A protester holds up a Canadian flag splattered in oil. UPI/Brian Kersey |
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QUEBEC CITY, May 18 (UPI) -- Academic terms at 25 colleges and universities will be suspended if a deal isn't reached in a 14-week-old tuition strike, Quebec lawmakers said.
The leader of Quebec's opposition Parti Quebecois called on Jean Charest, the province's prime minister, to negotiate a resolution to prevent the suspension of the current session at 14 colleges of general and vocational education and 11 of 18 universities, where students remain out of the classroom, Postmedia News reported Thursday.
"Why is the premier attacking the youth of Quebec?" Pauline Marois asked Thursday.
Hours after the Quebec government offered to resume negotiations with student groups, it announced legislation Thursday that would crack down on protesters, especially groups endorsing demonstrations, The Toronto Globe and Mail reported.
Under the Charest proposal, demonstrations would be barred inside and within 50 meters (about 164 feet) of college and university buildings.
Among other provisions, individual protesters found guilty of an act that forces classes to be canceled could be fined between $1,000 and $5,000. If a senior officer or representative of a student group or federation commits the offense, the fine could be as high as $35,000 and the student association or federation could face a fine as much as $125,000.
The proposal fueled an already nasty feud between the Quebec government and post-secondary students over tuition increases. The province, which is increasing fees by more than 80 percent over seven years, has had massive protests for more than three months, especially in Montreal.
Student associations announced they will challenge the bill in the courts, accusing the Charest government of violating their rights and creating a police state, the Globe and Mail reported.
"This bill transforms all civil protests into a crime and transforms a state that has a tradition of openness into a police state," said Leo Bureau Blouin, president of the college student federation. "It is an unreasonable limit on our right to demonstrate and aims at killing our associations."
Charest said his government has added $39 million to higher-education treasuries to protect low-income students from the $1,778 tuition increase.
