[foonlesse]

Up until recently , the protests , which consisted of thousands of people peacefully walking along main arteries of the city , whilst shouting slogans and waving banners and signs , were legal .
Now , at least a portion of the protesting is against that fact that the spontaneous protests are now illegal .

It should have been no surprise that the public would react in this way , given that the students are thousands of sons and daughters of mostly Canadian , many French/Canadian families , who are to foot the bill for the increases .
To not seemed to have listened to the group during protesting that has gone on for over a month , and then to suppress the collective voice has landed the government in a mess .

It is , indeed , sad that a great weekend in a world-class city may be spoiled to an extent , but I think there's perhaps more to it than what's on the surface .

Some in Montreal are now so cynical as to the government stance in all of this , that it is believed that there was no plan to settle the dispute , but rather , to paint the protestors in a bad light by running them into a few of the summer events .

So , yes it sucks , but we are talking about the oppression of free speech .
Blaming the students is a bit too simple .

Um, no Baggie, there has been nothing peaceful about the recent protests in Québec, but I do agree that the students are not to blame.

The protesters’ spokesman, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, is the leader of the high-profile radical provincial student body CLASSE.

At the prompting of Nadeau-Dubois, the protesters have caused public damage from day one, and continue to do so. They demonstrate no sympathy to the local merchants or citizens whose property they destroy.

Protesters show up donned in balaclavas looking for provocation then accuse the police of harassment when arrest attempts are made.

They have recently filed their planned routes in advance with the local authorities only to end up marching in a completely different direction, fluanting the regulations to which they agreed, further instigating confrontation.

Nadeau-Dubois has actively organized picket lines in front of university campuses physically barring students from entering classes.

The government’s proposed tuition increases, the catalyst for the recent “student” protests, are meager. The average tuition increase amounts to less than $265 per year for the next five years.
Please consider that university tuitions in Quebec are the lowest in North America, even with the proposed increases.
I find ironic when I see many protesters taking video footage with their smart phones which cost more than the proposed tuition increases.

The government has increasingly tried to negotiate with the student body in good faith but the leaders of CLASSE continue to reject or ignore any proposed discussions.
No one is “suppressing the collective voice” Baggie. This is utter nonsense. The marches are permitted to continue, however the government has had to pass emergency legislation to try to regulate the activities in attempt to minimize further public damage.
The idea of "suppression of free speech", as you put it Baggie, in the most liberal province in one of the most democratically free countries in the world is laughable.

It's interesting to note that Nadeau-Dubois, who attended private school as a child, received a scholarship grant from the provincial government in 2008 for $20,000 for his university studies. When questioned by the press of the potential contradiction between the receipt of this grant and his recent protests of tuition costs, he declined to comment.

I graduated from university in Quebec and at the time students were well aware, and grateful, for the low tuitions funded by taxpayers. I remember a tuition increase mid-way through my curriculum and although a few grumblings were heard by students, we never thought of protesting with violence in the streets. I’m sure the vast majority of students feel this way today.


Apologies the rant and taking this thread off topic.