Dion rejects suggestion he should renounce French citizenship: Knowledge Driven Revolution

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion defended his loyalty to Canada amid questions about his dual Canadian-French citizenship.

Dion was born in Canada, but his mother was born in France and Dion holds French citizenship as a result. "I'm proud of who I am, and I am fully loyal to my country, and nobody will question that," Dion told reporters Tuesday. "I'm 100 per cent loyal to Canada, and I believe I've more than demonstrated that in my life."

The same issue dogged Governor General Michaelle Jean, who also held a French passport through her husband. She eventually renounced French citizenship saying it would feel strange to hold both while fulfilling her vice-regal duties.

Ezra Levant, a longtime conservative pundit and publisher of the Western Standard, criticized Dion in a column in the Calgary Sun for not doing the same.

"When it comes to making decisions about the war on terror, and Canada's role in Afghanistan, will Dion be unduly influenced by France, a country that has taken up the role of lawyer and arms dealer for every terrorist state in the world, even defending Saddam Hussein until the eve of his overthrow?" Levant wrote.

NDP Leader Jack Layton was not as critical, but said it would probably be a better idea to maintain one citizenship.

"I would prefer that a leader of a party hold only Canadian citizenship, because one represents many Canadians, and for me that means that it's better to remain the citizen of one country," Layton said.

"But for a person that isn't in a position of representing others, holding dual citizenship is fine with us."

Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe said it was "no problem" at all for Dion to hold dual citizenship, "because he's a modern man, he's not living in a previous century."

The question of dual citizenship is one that comes up periodically for public debate, most recently after a number of people with dual Lebanese-Canadian citizenship received Canadian citizenship to escape hostilities in the Middle East. Some of those people did not actually reside in Canada.

The Department of Foreign Affairs is also re-examining the issue of whether Canadian citizens can run for public office in foreign countries, as happened earlier this year with the Italian government.

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HOME From Germany to American - Party Police, Party Courts and Concentration Camps P3s, Nazis and Polite Canadian Fascism The Ghost in the Machine - The Forced Chemical Evolution of Man Rouge States and the 9/11 Truth Terrorists Canadians Should Pay NOT to be Poisoned: NDP V for Vendetta - R for Reality Canadian Bird Flu Pandemic Looming ? Shill of the Week: Stephan Harper Aspartame: The Sweetest Killer Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week: Creating Fake Terrorists Shill of the Week: Paul Martin The Number 1 Reason YOU became a Slave	Dion rejects suggestion he should renounce French citizenship JENNIFER DITCHBURN - CP December 08, 2006 Liberal Leader Stephane Dion defended his loyalty to Canada amid questions about his dual Canadian-French citizenship. Dion was born in Canada, but his mother was born in France and Dion holds French citizenship as a result. "I'm proud of who I am, and I am fully loyal to my country, and nobody will question that," Dion told reporters Tuesday. "I'm 100 per cent loyal to Canada, and I believe I've more than demonstrated that in my life." The same issue dogged Governor General Michaelle Jean, who also held a French passport through her husband. She eventually renounced French citizenship saying it would feel strange to hold both while fulfilling her vice-regal duties. Ezra Levant, a longtime conservative pundit and publisher of the Western Standard, criticized Dion in a column in the Calgary Sun for not doing the same. "When it comes to making decisions about the war on terror, and Canada's role in Afghanistan, will Dion be unduly influenced by France, a country that has taken up the role of lawyer and arms dealer for every terrorist state in the world, even defending Saddam Hussein until the eve of his overthrow?" Levant wrote. NDP Leader Jack Layton was not as critical, but said it would probably be a better idea to maintain one citizenship. "I would prefer that a leader of a party hold only Canadian citizenship, because one represents many Canadians, and for me that means that it's better to remain the citizen of one country," Layton said. "But for a person that isn't in a position of representing others, holding dual citizenship is fine with us." Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe said it was "no problem" at all for Dion to hold dual citizenship, "because he's a modern man, he's not living in a previous century." The question of dual citizenship is one that comes up periodically for public debate, most recently after a number of people with dual Lebanese-Canadian citizenship received Canadian citizenship to escape hostilities in the Middle East. Some of those people did not actually reside in Canada. The Department of Foreign Affairs is also re-examining the issue of whether Canadian citizens can run for public office in foreign countries, as happened earlier this year with the Italian government. Read the full article here Broken Link? If the link to the original article is broken or has been altered you can view the article by clicking here. About KDR \| \| Home \| \| Weekly Features Archive	Weekly Features Archive
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