Canadians should consider shaping their own future.
Basically, our 1867 CONSTITUTION was drafted in a hurry to meet the urgent needs of a 19th century period of
turmoil. 2002, should be a RELATIVELY peaceful and democratic year and perhaps
we should consider drafting a 21ST CENTURY CONSTITUTION. There are five
amending formulas that we can use to change the Constitution of Canada;
which process needs to be employed is dependent upon the subject matter of the
proposed amendment. Some countries have
used special assemblies to draft new constitutions and we could do the same.
There are almost as many methods for changing constitutions as there are
states. In some countries, such as New Zealand or the United Kingdom, any
aspect of the constitution can be changed by an ordinary statute passed in
Parliament in the usual manner. In other countries, such as Belgium,
the constitution can be changed by an act of the legislature but with a
special majority or procedure needed. Some countries, such as Australia
and Switzerland,
require that changes be approved by the electorate in a referendum. The
following AMENDMENTS to our old 1867 constitution have been minor in scope.
 Constitution
Amendment Proclamation, 1983
Entrenched
the recognition of rights obtained under aboriginal land claims agreements.
Committed
all governments to invite aboriginal and territorial government representatives to conferences on issues related to them.
Constitution
Act, 1985 (Representation)
Replaced
section 51 of the Constitution Act, 1867.
It
did away with the old, complex formula that the Mulroney government claimed
would have created too many House of Commons seats, therefore costing more
money.
Constitution
Amendment, 1987 (Newfoundland Act)
Amended
Term 17 of the Newfoundand
Act (formerly the Terms of Union of Newfoundland with Canada) to
include rights and privileges of more denominational schools.
Constitution Amendment Proclamation, 1993 (New Brunswick Act)
Amends
the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to include the equality of the French and
English linguistic communities in New Brunswick.
Includes
a provision for the New Brunswick legislature and government to "preserve
and promote the status, rights and privileges," of those communities.
Constitution Amendment Proclamation, 1993 (Prince Edward Island)
Amends
the Prince
Edward Island Terms of Union to recognize that the province can levy tolls
for the use of a, "fixed crossing joining the Island to the mainland."
(Specifically, Confederation Bridge.)
Constitution Amendment Proclamation, 1997 (Newfoundland Act)
Repeals
and replaces Term 17 of the Newfoundland
Act.
Allows
the government of Newfoundland to take control of establishing and continuing
denominational and nondenominational schools.
Proposal
of the amendment was approved by provincial referendum in the Fall of 1995.
Constitution
Amendment, 1997 (Quebec)
Added
Section 93A to the Constitution
Act 1867, which excludes Quebec from the section relating to the
organization of schools in the province (section 93). This gives it the sole
power to determine the system of education used there.
Chief
motive was to allow Quebec to reorganize the school boards along linguistic
lines.
Constitution
Act, 1998 (Newfoundland Act)
Repeals
and replaces Term 17 of the Newfoundland
Act.
Further
refines the issue of denominational schools in Newfoundland.
There
is no mention of denominational schools, so a single school system can be
established.
Courses
in religion are guaranteed, including religious observances at the request of
parents.
Constitution
Act, 1999 (Nunavut)
Amends
the Constitution Act, 1867, to raise the number of senators to 105 from 104, to
allow Nunavut to be represented by one Senator.
Also
raises the maximum number of Senators to 113 from 112.
Determines
the fate of the current Senator from the Northwest Territories
Amends
section 51(2) so that Nunavut is represented by one member of Parliament.
Will
come into force on the same day as the Nunavut Act, on April 1, 1999.
Constitution
Amendment, 2001 (Newfoundland and Labrador)
Officially
changes the name of the Province of Newfoundland to the "Province of
Newfoundland and Labrador".
Amends
The Terms of Union of Newfoundland with Canada to reflect the changes.
CONSTITUTIONS
AROUND THE WORLD
Examples that we could follow!
Below you will find a list of links to a wide range of countries around the
world. For most states, there is a link to a general site that provides an
overview of the country and its constitutional history, as well as links to
their most important constitutional documents.
Australia
The United States Constitution was drafted by a Constitution
Convention. For more information about the drafting of the U.S. Constitution,
and its subsequent ratification, connect to the Constitution
Day site. A much more recent and successful example is the The South African
Constitutional Assembly.
Some Canadians believe that a constitutional assembly should be
used to revise the Canadian Constitution, instead of relying upon agreements
reached at meetings of the Prime Minister of Canada and the provincial premiers.
For an example of such a proposal, you can visit Constituent
Assembly NOW!
|