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Quebec Premier Pauline Marois celebrates hockey gold but snubs Canada

Quebec Premier Pauline Marois looks on during her closing speech at the Parti Quebecois Convention in Montreal, November 10, 2013 file photo. REUTERS/Christinne Muschi

Quebec Premier Pauline Marois managed to do something every politician had hoped they could do: Extract political capital from the glorious gold-medal performance of the Olympic men’s hockey team.

But instead of celebrating Canada’s success at its national pastime to foster good vibrations, Marois seemingly intentionally slighted the “Canada” aspect of Team Canada and celebrated the success of four francophone players on an unnamed team.

Welcome to Quebec, where the premier will take pains to snub Canada as she heads into an election to be fought on a culturally-divisive policy. No wonder, according to a new poll, half of Quebec’s English-speaking community has considered fleeing the province.

The furor in question came from a press release issued after Canada’s men’s hockey team won gold at the Sochi Olympic on Sunday. Marois said in the statement she was "happy to congratulate the men's hockey team for this gold medal."

She went on to identify four Quebec players - Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Patrice Bergeron, Roberto Luongo and Marint St-Louis, for their performances. "This medal is a joy to their numerous fans," the comment concludes.

[ Related: Half of Quebec non-francophones consider leaving ]

This isn’t the first time this year the Olympics have been the focus of Canada/Quebec tension. Much debate has surrounded the success of Quebec athletes compared to the rest of Canada, so much so that moguls skiier Alexandre Bilodeau was asked about it by a British journalist after winning the gold medal. (He deftly sidestepped the issue.)

Pierre Duchesne, a Parti Quebecois minister, further incited debate when he tweeted an image of the Olympic medal-winning Dufour-Lapointe sisters posing in mittens emblazoned with the Quebec Fleur-de-lis. The image had been photoshopped to remove red Canada mittens featuring a maple leaf and replace them with the provincial alternative.

Duchesne later said the mistake wasn’t intentional. Marois’ comment, however, was direct and purposeful in what it said. And what it didn’t say.

Gerard Deltell, house leader of Quebec's opposition party, told a press conference that the move was small and disgusting.

“I am not proud to have seen that. Mme Marois decided to act as a péquiste leader and a separatist leader instead of a leader of all Québécois. When you are a premier, you are premier of all Québécois, federalists or sovereigntists. You shall respect all the people, not only those who voted for you,” he said, via the Canadian Press.

[ Related: Mr. Ford goes to Ottawa: Toronto mayor eyes federal funds to pay for subways ]

Petty, indeed. The governing Parti Quebecois is just weeks away from expectedly dissolving parliament and launching an election that will be fought largely on the back of a divisive policy banning religious symbols from public offices.

The separatist Parti Quebecois is also vowing to crack down on creeping bilingualism if they form a majority in the next election, ending such common practices as the greeting “Bonjour-Hi.”

Postmedia News reports that Diane De Courcy, the minister responsible for Quebec's French Language, said recently that a majority government would re-introduce a bill to strengthen the province's French language charter.

So is it any surprise that Quebec is seen as inhospitable by at least half of its English-speaking community.

In a recent survey by CBC News, half of Quebec's anglophone and allophone population said they have strongly considered leaving the province in the past year. Only 10 per cent of francophones responded similarly.

It's rather brilliant, in a Machiavellian sort of way. Pick battles that cut along deep, cultural rifts. Make life untenable for the groups you don't like and wait for enough of them that the balance of power shifts. Wash, rinse and repeat. In this way, separatism becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

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