Sovereignty of Canada; Not Quebec, Is the Real Issue!!! Chretien Not Bouchard Needs New "Rules"

TORONTO, ON; December 22, 1999: At an extremely precarious time for Canada when many Canadians are concerned about the country s very future, the Chretien government is guilty of the most reckless and cynical political manipulation I ve seen in a long time," said Paul Hellyer, leader of the Canadian Action Party (CAP), and former cabinet minister in the St. Laurent, Pearson and Trudeau governments. 'The Liberals have created one of the biggest straw men in Canadian political history."

"By introducing his referendum rules, Mr. Chretien has done nothing more than stir up trouble in Quebec in order to turn peoples attention away from the real issue facing this land __ the fact that, at the rate Canadian industry and resources are being bought by Americans, we are very close to the point of no return after which it will be inevitable that Canada will be annexed by the United Stales."

Mr. Hellver pointed out that the question of Quebec separation will be irrelevant if annexation occurs because both 'distinct societies, Canada and Quebec, will disappear from the map.

"This dangerous trend toward annexation is unavoidable unless it is reversed soon, he warned. "The sale of MacMillan Bloedel, the icon of the Canadian forest industry, was a monumental blow to this country, but it was just one of thousands of U.S. takeovers since the Free Trade (Investment) Agreement came into effect ten years ago. Now, the merger of the historic Canadian National Railway (CNR) with a much larger U.S. railway is another major step in the direction of 'one country ."

He added that locating the head office of the new rail enterprise in Montreal is nothing more than tokenism designed to dilute nationalist concerns and side-step Canadian legislation. "When Paul Tellier (the current head of CNR) goes or even well before then, the head office will move south and 'Canadian National will disappear forever."

The Canadian Action Party(CAP) head stated that such business developments, which occur almost daily, combined with the Chretien government s willingness to put health care and education on the table in the Year 2000 Round of the World Trade Organization (WTO) talks have taken Canada closer to the brink of extinction in the past year. He said that one of the main American goals in the WTO negotiations is to make it easier for giant, mainly U. S., transnational to move into Canada and provide "for profit" health care and education services, which will lead to two-tier, American style health and education systems.

Mr. Hellyer noted that the combined negative effects of the Canada/U. S. Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA and the various WTO agreements present such a threat to the sovereignty of Canada and Quebec that even "free trade" supporters such as former Alberta Premier Peter Lougheed and former Supreme Court Justice Willard Estey are now speaking out. At the same time, the idea of a customs union with the U.S, which would virtually wipe out the border, and the use of the American dollar, are guaranteed to bring an end to Canada.

"The tragedy is that we are rapidly heading toward Canada s disappearance. But instead of meeting this life and death challenge to the country s future head on, Mr. Chretien is attempting to make himself a hero with English-speaking voters with his national-unity smokescreen. He is diverting attention from his surrender of Canada policies by appearing to take on Quebec separatists. This is political manipulation of the worst and most destructive kind."

The CAP leader pointed out that a clear question for the next Quebec referendum, if and when there is one, is important. However, of far greater and more urgent importance is a clear question for all Canadians which none of our political leaders has had the courage or honesty to ask: Do you want to be annexed by the United States? Yes or No.

That is the most urgent question for Canadians to answer," Mr. Hellyer said. "Once we have had the opportunity to decide whether we want to remain Canadians __ and I am sure the vast majority would throw their support behind Canada __ then the question of national unity will be relevant again. So, I challenge the Liberals to put their corporate-continentals policies to the voters in a clear, concise way. What is good enough for Lucien Bouchard should be good enough for Jean Chretien.

"Until that time, the Liberal government is killing Canada with its cynical political maneuvering and its willingness to sell _ in some cases, virtually give away - anything and everything of value," Mr. Hellyer concluded.

For more information, please contact:

Paul Hellyer: (416) 535_1008

Ken Fernandez: (514) 747_2545

Peter McCrindle: (514) 428_0921

Web Site: w.canadianactionparty.ca