QUEBEC — Quebec sovereigntists found themselves fending off a barrage of friendly fire Wednesday from the old general who once nearly marched them into the promised land of independence.
Lucien Bouchard, the charismatic former Parti Quebecois premier who brought Quebec to within a whisker of sovereignty, launched a broadside against his old party.
He levelled charges in three sensitive areas: he said the PQ had become increasingly “radical” toward minorities, ignored important issues like education and reducing public debt, and he described the PQ’s very raison d’etre — Quebec independence — as unattainable.
It was a rare comment on current affairs from Bouchard, who has avoided speaking publicly about politics since his 2001 retirement.
His wide-ranging remarks were summed up in a front-page headline Wednesday in Le Devoir newspaper: Sovereignty Is No Longer Achievable, Bouchard Says.
Not only is independence on the shelf but it’s not even something Quebecers should be focusing on for now, Bouchard said during a public discussion forum the previous evening in Quebec City.
Sovereigntist figures all offered variations on a similar reaction: they all expressed affection for Bouchard, stressed that he was still a sovereigntist at heart, and said they disagreed with his assessments.
Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe, in an interview with The Canadian Press, called it normal for fellow travellers to have disagreements and he noted that federalists have their own.