Charest – The Concordian

The Charest government adopted the controversial legislation Bill 78, in an effort to put an end to the tuition crisis Friday afternoon.

Bill 78 was tabled Thursday night and voted into law 68 for, 48 against. The bill aimed at calming the student conflict was finalized and accepted after undergoing amendments. In hopes of restoring order to Quebec after 14 weeks of protest, the law is set to expire in July 2013.

The new law imposes strict regulations for demonstrations and limits the number of participants, when, and how long individuals can protest. Hefty fines are to be imposed for students and organizations that violate provisions of the law. Furthermore, the emergency legislation also suspends the rest of the semester at post-secondary institutions affected by the strike.

An individual who blocks access to a CEGEP or university could face a fine anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000. Student leaders could be charged up to $35,000 while student associations and federations could face a penalty of $125,000.

Demonstrations are now restricted to 50 people and an itinerary must be given to the police eight hours in advance of the action. This changed from the original proposal, in which the provincial government wanted to limit the protests to groups of less than 10 people. Protesters must also inform the police about the length of the protest beforehand.

Around the same time yesterday, Montreal’s city council passed a bylaw prohibiting the wearing of masks during public demonstrations.

Student leaders, the Charest Liberals’ opposition, and various civil rights associations have openly criticized the controversial legislation and the ethics behind it.

Following the adoption of Bill 78, the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec’s President Martine Desjardins said that the situation is “not over until it is over.”

Members of the Parti Quebecois voted against the emergency legislation, still sporting the red squares associated with the student movement. Leader Pauline Marois denounced the provincial government for an “abusive” law, calling it “one of the darkest days in Quebec democracy.”

Despite the strict limitations imposed by the law, thousands took to the streets of Montreal last night in protest where Molotov cocktails were reportedly thrown at police.

Read Bill 78 in it’s entirety in English (via CBC news) or French (via La Presse)

Quebec Premier Jean Charest introduced special legislation to the National Assembly today to suspend the academic session in hopes of ending the tuition fee crisis in Quebec.

The proposed legislation would suspend the current semester until August, postponing the fall semester until October 2012 for the 14 CEGEPs and 11 universities seriously affected by the student strike.

The bill was met with mixed reactions during question period after being tabled by the Charest Liberals in the National Assembly this morning.

Newly appointed Education Minister Michelle Courchesne defended the government’s decision, claiming that the bill “defends the right to education and accessibility to education.”

Parti Quebec leader Pauline Marois criticized Charest for trying to introduce special legislation instead of meeting with student organizations to negotiate the tension over the tuition increase. Visibly upset, Marois called the bill a “waste” and denounced the government’s decision as “disgraceful.”

“This is an important decision for both students and the future of Quebec,” explained Charest.

It’s not clear when the legislation will be adopted but Charest implied it would be in the near future. The bill, announced yesterday in a press conference, resulted in another night of protests in downtown Montreal by students and supporters unhappy with the idea of postponing the semester.

Last night, people took to the streets in three different demonstrations. While two protests remained peaceful, the last turned violent in the early morning and resulted in 122 arrests.

Over 3,000 protesters marched through the streets until the demonstration was declared illegal at 12:25 a.m. In a round up, Montreal Police detained members of the media including five student journalists from The McGill Daily and The Link who were later released after informing the Montreal Police that they were reporters.

Although Charest said he hopes the law will bring calm to the situation while pressure is mounting, some students believe it will have the opposite effect. Hugo Girouard, a student at CÉGEP de Saint-Laurent that has been on strike since February, expressed his disdain for the bill.

“I’m hoping the government understands that they are not kings,” Girouard said. “They can’t control us like this.”

Université de Québec à Montréal student Marc-Antoine St-Yves believes the legislation will not solve the tuition crisis. Although St-Yves has finished his semester and didn’t boycott classes, he is worried the law will only worsen the situation.

“What I think will happen is the strike will go on,” said St-Yves. “And if the law passes there will be violence for sure.”

“I just hope the student will find a way to negotiate with the government and stop this crisis,” added St-Yves. “The patience of the population has a limit.”