Parti Quebecois: Jean Tremblay

Djemila Benhabib Dept: In the name of creating a supposedly secular state, the Parti Quebecois has pursued hostile policies, proposing a ban on non-Christian religious symbols from public institutions and two-tier citizenship based on ability to speak French a position that softened under harsh criticism. The mayor of Saguenay, Que., Jean Tremblay, accused PQ candidate Djemila Benhabib who is a staunch advocate of complete secularism of being a foreigner with an unpronounceable name trying to impose alien values. He was lambasted to varying degrees by all parties and many Quebeckers. But the PQ s Pauline Marois isn t the only leader whose embrace of ethnic communities is notably absent. The closest thing to ethnic outreach for Fran ois Legault was expressing his admiration for those diligent Asians. And three weeks into the campaign, even Liberal Leader Jean Charest hasn t made a single high-profile campaign stop designed to show love for a segment of Quebec s population that is overwhelmingly on his side, according to Globe and Mail. They are scared. The Liberals are scared. They know they don t have enough support out in the regions where they have seats, few ethnic voters, and people who are more Catholic, said Salam Elmenyawi. But there s a silent majority in the province who don t care about this issue, one way or the other. So out of shear opportunism, the PQ sees a chance to appeal to a thin slice of people and in this Quebec election campaign, such symbolic demonstrations of outreach are sadly rare. Minority communities are often cast in a negative or stereotyped light, or shunned, as all three main parties relentlessly pursue the francophone soft nationalist swing voters who decide elections. One Montreal Muslim leader has invited all three parties to make a campaign stop at his community centre. He hasn t heard back, even from the Liberals. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.