Nova Scotia’s electoral map must be redrawn because it violates the constitution, the province’s Court of Appeal has ruled, recognizing that the government caused significant harm to the French-speaking minority by abolishing three Acadian constituencies in 2012.

More than 250 years after the deportation of the Acadians, Nova Scotia has once again been called to order by the courts. The victory is partly symbolic, but it will guarantee better representation of the 34,000 Acadians in democratic institutions, estimates the Acadian Federation of Nova Scotia, which has been trying for five years to invalidate a decision by the former NDP government.

In 1991, the Supreme Court ruled that factors such as the representation of minority groups “ may need to be taken into account if our legislative assemblies are to effectively represent diversity » Canadian.

Redesign

The following year, four constituencies were created, much smaller and less populous than the others, three to give Acadians a better place in the Legislative Assembly and another for the large Afro-Nova Scots community.

“ This principle was respected in 2002 during the next redistribution, but in 2012 things got even worse »explains the Director General of the Acadian Federation, Marie-Claude Rioux, in a serious tone.

This year, Darrell Dexter’s government explicitly removed this principle from the mandate of the independent commission responsible for updating the electoral map. From now on, each constituency must represent approximately the same number of voters, it said.

Despite this, the commission recommended retaining the electoral districts of Clare, Argyle and Richmond on the basis of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Stung then declared the NDP in favour of this report “ null and void »The “independent” commission will ultimately recommend the abolition of the three constituencies, despite popular outrage and the resignation of one of its members.

“ It is obvious that this decision did not reflect the true opinion of the “independent” commission. »The Court of Appeal appreciated this in its decision on Tuesday. It encouraged the government to agree with the Acadians on a formula that would allow them to be better represented in Halifax.

“ This decision is very clear : The previous government should have respected the principle of Acadian constituencies, said in an interview with Duty Liberal Deputy Premier of Nova Scotia, Michel Samson. The government accepts the decision of the Court of Appeal. We have already contacted community representatives to start discussions. This is an important issue and we need to get it right. »

An eternal struggle

The Acadians were the first French speakers to settle in Canada in 1604, four years before the founding of Quebec, recalls Marie-Claude Rioux. “ Starting in 1755, we were deported. Then we were allowed to return, provided we did not form groups large enough to pose a danger to English speakers. This explains why our population is literally spread out over every corner of Nova Scotia and why our territories are so large. »

She recalls that obtaining the right to vote, the right to property and the right to education was the result of bitter struggles that stretched from the 19th century to the early 2000s. In fact, it was not until 2000 that access to French-speaking public education from kindergarten to the end of secondary school was guaranteed.

Hope

The federal government and the government are expected to begin talks in the coming days. Marie-Claude Rioux is thinking big and is not afraid to dream of a larger number of protected constituencies.

“ The new Democratic government was the worst government for Acadians in recent history, as it actively worked to destroy Acadia. We are pleased that the Liberals are taking a different approach. We must now see what must be done to right the wrong. »

To watch in video