Mar. 25, 2007: Protection and Promotion

The right to promote means this will burgeon. The linguistic, native, academic and arts communities must be thrilled with this.

An important step in the fight for cultural diversity , Beverley J. Oda, National Post, March 21, 2007

www.canada.com/nationalpost/
news/editorialsletters/story.ht
ml?id=35e466f1-935a-46cd-97eb-bc1bb1dc6b62

Beverley J. Oda is the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Status of Women.

Canadians should enthusiastically welcome the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, which came into force on Sunday.

[....] The Convention will be a valuable tool for our country and other signatories. This treaty, which reaffirms the right of states to adopt and maintain policies that encourage cultural expression, will help us promote the growth of cultural industries in Canada and around the world. By recognizing both the social and the economic nature of cultural goods and services, the Convention gives our artists and creators the flexibility needed to continue sharing their stories with Canadians and the rest of the world. In return, Canadians will be able to have rich and diverse access to cultural works from our country and elsewhere.

With the entry into force of the Convention on March 18, we are taking a significant step. However, we must now turn our attention to implementation. Once again, we are counting on the support of our partners within Canada and around the world. We will continue to demonstrate leadership internationally so that our position is well understood -- particularly at the First Conference of Parties, to be held by the summer of 2007. [....]

Ah, wonderful ... the right to set up multicultural, academic, education and native departments to teach a Heinz Ketchup of languages ... Rights to special schools coming up ... If you don't think that's coming, do a little reading. If almost no-one knows an almost dead language, if there is practically no language left to teach, and if those who know those few words are hardly literate, all the better. We'll create a reasonable facimile. The modern thousand varieties of languages coming up. Oh, yes, working Canadians may work to pay for it, particularly if you speak English. You may also pay for the ads the government will run to convince doubters that if one parent speaks the language of power in Canada, then they really should enrol their precious bundle and budding linguistic success story in their schools. They will be creating new schools to accommodate those new languages which they will staff, as well, and they will invite your child to attend too. Create a need and academics and bureaucrats will fill it. If there is no need, they'll create that for you too.


Note: I didn't even get into the plans by the arts communities. Scroll down FHTR the week beginning Jan. 29, 2006.

I suspect Min. Oda means well but she will learn, if she hasn't already.