Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
First of all, I'd like to welcome Mr. Fraser and his colleagues.
I read your report, Mr. Fraser. I noted twelve points, but I know that in five minutes we could not touch on them all.
I worked at the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne, and the Fédération de la jeunesse canadienne-française. I worked hard for the right to manage our schools in Saskatchewan, and have taught in minority communities. I'm from a minority community. I am for an independent Quebec, but that's something we'll talk about again later, although it's a good topic.
I noticed that the word "assimilation" was never used. In fact, saying, "never" may be a bit strong; let's say it is rarely used. The survival of French in Canada, and in North America as a whole, is what I really believe in and am prepared to fight for. Canada has not done what it needed to do. Among other things, it has allowed the provinces to do dreadful things. That's why we need an independent Quebec.
In your conclusion, you state that we're much closer to having the languages on an even footing. But I feel we're still very far from it; in fact, we're getting further and further away from guaranteeing the survival of French. French is losing a great deal of ground. As I said in an article in the daily newspaper Le Droit, after your report, bilingualism in Canada exists in theory, not in practice. That's what hurts.
Regarding the issue of assimilation, on page IX of your report, you state: “ [...] pressure for assimilation in official language communities remains strong”. On page 55, you add: “ Members of Francophone communities outside Quebec are among the most bilingual Canadians in the country (84% speak English and French)”. I would prefer you to say “Acadians” or “French-Canadians”, rather than “members of Francophone communities outside Quebec”. For them, it's more a question of moving towards assimilation rather than ensuring the survival of French, in my view. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with being bilingual. I'm bilingual myself.
I'd like to know why no one talks about French disappearing because of assimilation among people whose primary language from a very early age has been French. Why don't you mention this in your report? Would you like to tackle the issue at some future date? You could at least set aside two or three pages for it, to show that the danger's real.