The most extreme separatists in Quebec had never believed in democratic methods to solve the problem. The y wanted separation right away and would do anything they could to get that. In the 1950’s and 1960’s terror tactics such as bombing, kidnapping, and assassination to force governments to give them want they wanted were happening all over the world in pretty much all the countries. Since 1963 Quebec had suffered from scattered acts of separatist violence, mainly bombings which usually did little damage. Now, In October 1970, a small group of terrorist-separatists caused what became one of the most serious political crisis in Canadian history.
On October 5 the British trade commissioner in Montreal, James Cross, was kidnapped from his home by terrorists who called them selves the Front de Liberation du Quebec, or FLQ. While the government of Canada tried to negotiate Cross’s release-Saying it would give in to some of the FLQ’s Demands; another “cell” of the FLQ’s decided to take another hostage. On October 10 the Pierre Laporte, Mister of labor for Quebec was playing football with his children when a group of armed men seized him and drove off.
While the police where determined to find Cross, Laporte, and the kidnappers, everyone wondered who or what would be next. A number of weapons and explosives had been taken from armories and construction sites in the recent months, with all of this all of Quebec was in a panic and in extreme fear not knowing what was going to happen next. On October 15 members of the Canadian forces were sent to Quebec to help out the exhausted local police. On October 16 the federal government, acting on Quebec’s request, declared that an “apprehended insurrection” existed in Quebec and invoked the War Measures Act. This was Canada’s emergency law, developed back in World War 1, which gave the government and the police special powers in a time of crisis, suspending most normal civil liberties. A crisis could be a war, a rebellion (insurrection), or a situation in which the government had reason to believe that a rebellion was likely (an apprehended insurrection).
The Essay on Flq Crisis War Measures
On October 5, 1970, British trade commissioner James Cross was kidnapped in his Westmount home by members of the terrorist group Front de liberation du Quebec. The FLQ Manifesto called for non-democratic separation to be brought about by acts of terror. From 1963 to 1967, the FLQ planted 35 bombs; from 1968 to 1970 they planted over 50 bombs. By the fall of 1970 the terrorist acts of the FLQ cells ...
The kidnappings and the demands and threats the FLQ’s were making seemed to add up to that situation. Using their special powers under the War Measures Act, the police immediately began rounding up suspected FLQ members and people thought to be sympathetic to violent separatism. Several hundred arrests were made, but not in time to save Pierre Laporte. On Saturday, October 17, Pierre Laporte was murdered by the FLQ. His body was dumped in the trunk of a car at an airport and the media told where to find it. “Terror and murder and military rule stalked the peaceable kingdom”.
The arrests continued and so did the search for James Cross. Finally, early in December, the house where cross was being hidden was discovered. His captors agreed to release him unharmed in return for safe passage to Cuba. While Canadians watched on television, the bargain was carried out: the terrorists were flown out of the country and Mr. Cross’s capture ended. Later the murders of Laporte were caught. They were eventually tried, convicted, and given long jail sentences. Some of those who had gone to Cuba eventually returned disillusioned to Canada and served short prison terms. By 1984 all of the terrorists, including Laporte’s murderers, were judged to have paid their debt to society.
When the War Measures Act was used in October 1970, the polls showed that the vast majority of Canadians supported this drastic action by the government. Later, when it had appeared that the police had abused their powers by arresting people not even remotely connected with the FLQ, and when the dreaded FLQ turned out to be fewer than a dozen young thugs plus some sympathizers, many critics suggested that the government had over reacted during this crisis. Had they used a sledgehammer to swat a fly, and in doing so threatened everyone’s freedom? Prime Minister Trudeau had a long record of championing civil liberties. Had he abandoned principle for the sake of smashing separatism in Quebec?
The Essay on Act A Measure Government Federalist Six
Intro This document is an extract from "Publius", The Federalist n^069, entitled The Real Character of the Executive and written by Alexander Hamilton on March 14 th 1788, one of the 85 articles of The Federalist Papers written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison and published in New York newspapers. This particular one was published in the "New-York Packet." I will go into this ...
The pint could be hotly debated. The FLQ had seemed like a pretty deadly, menacing fly at the time. And at least it had been crushed. Canada was free of separatism terrorism for many years. Even the most dedicated advocates of violent revolution in Quebec decided the risks were to great and turned to peaceful, democratic methods of advancing their cause. The War Measures Act was not used again, and nothing that had been done to destroy the FLQ hurt the democratic separatists of the Parti Quebecois.
Bibliography
1.http://cbc.ca/millennium/timelines/feature_octobercrisis.html
2.http://www.cbc.ca/onair/shows/blackoctober/
3.http://www.ola.bc.ca/online/cf/documents/1970FLQManifesto.htm
4.http://www.canadahistory.com/trudeau_-_war_measures_act.htm
5.http://www.cbc.ca/news/indepth/october/
