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- Sophie and Kristian

Bibliography

Bercovitch, J. & Jackson, R. (2009). Conflict Resolution in the Twenty-First Century: Principles, Methods, and Approaches. United States of America: The Univeristy of Miochigan Press.

Fenwick, R. Comparative Studies in Society and History, Vol. 23, No. 2 (Apr., 1981), pp. 196-216

Published by: Cambridge University Press 

Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/178733178733178733

Gingras, D. (2008). Window of Hope and Reconciliation. Montreal, QC: Essence Publishing.

Guerard, G. (2008). Mastering the Conflict Game: Getting Ahead by Exploring the Hidden Life of Organizations. Quebec: Les Editions Yvon Blais Inc.

Jones, D. T. (1997): An independent Quebec: Looking into the abyss. The Washington Quarterly, 20:2,

21-36

Sklar, A. (1999). Contested collectives: The struggle to define the “we” in

the 1995 Québec referendum. Southern Communication Journal, 64:2, 106-122

Samuel, T. J. (1994). Quebec Separatism is Dead: Demography is Destiny. Ottawa, ON: John Samuel & Associates Inc.

In Conclusion...

"Conflict resolution is not about suppressing, eliminating, or controlling conflicts. Nor is it about avoiding a conflict, and it certainly is not about using superior force to conquer your adversary. These activities do take place in conflict, but they have little to do with its resolution," State Jacob Bercovitch and Richard Jackson in Conflict Resolution in the twenty-First Century. Bercovitch and Jackson go on to say that conflict resolution is a "range of formal or informal activities undertaken by parties to a conflict, or outsiders, designed to limit and reduce the level of violence in conflict, and to achieve some understanding on the key issues in conflict, a political agreement, or a jointly acceptable decision on future interactions and distribution of resources. Conflict resolution is about accepting a conflict, recognising that there are ways out of it, and engaging in some tactic or explicit coordination, without which none of these goals can be achieved" (Bercovitch & Jackson, 2009). Separatism vs. reconciliation is a debate which will most likely continue for years to come,  the reality of the situation is that there will always be people who feel they have been wronged by whatever decision the Quebec and Canadian government come to. After carefully analysing both sides of this controversial topic, we feel that collaboration between Quebec and Canada is the only way to come to any sort of agreement, and ultimately we believe it is in the best interest of Canada as a country to accommodate the needs of Quebec in order to remain whole. Canada is known for its peaceful stance in the world and we feel that it is time for this conflict to be put to rest.

The C-Snap & Interpretation

C-Snap Interpretation

Element	Observations	Links with other Elements	Comments
Style	Quebec and the PQ party are both Competitive  All other Canadian provinces and Canadian government is collaborative  Older Quebec    Generation want to separate taking on a competitive style.	Although the Quebec and the PQ is competitive they only hold a power of 7 and 8  Where as the Canadian government hold a greater power of 10	This competitive style makes them want to separate and be more independent.
Interests	Younger Quebec generation is holding a different view and their interest is not to separate they take a more collaborating style.	The younger generations have the same power as the older generations and are gaining more power, as they get older. The younger generation generally does not want much change.	The Canadian government has a better approach and is will to collaborate with Quebec.
Informal Structure	Quebec has a negative relationship with the rest of Canada.  Canada seems to be fine with Quebec Everyone seems to have a good relationship with Canada except Quebec		Separation is becoming less and less of a possibility with new immigrants and younger generations becoming less for it.
Culture	Differences in culture is what Quebec's disagreement is over	Quebec fears the loss of culture this is why they feel it right to separate.	Quebec and its PQ party need to move away from competing and start collaborating so at least they can at least benefit for certain aspects than non at all. This may help the loss of their culture and language.
Power	Quebec is still controlled by Canada because of power.	Quebec should be careful because the rest of Canada has more power The older Quebec generation should collaborate with younger generations Older Quebec generation want to want to separate but hold less power. Quebec, the PQ, and the Older generations who want to separate does not hold enough power to get what they want, another method must be implemented.	The battle Quebec, PQ party and its separatist older generation are fighting a losing battle. And it is not really a battle because the other side does not really seem to be fighting back.

Kristian and Sophie's Proposed Conflict Style for Resolution

When it comes to the conflict between Quebec and the rest of the provinces in Canada, we feel that collaboration is the only way to come to a definitive resolution and maintain peace and happiness between both parties. "Collaboration means problem-solving with the other party to resolve a conflict. The assumption behind collaboration is that people will act in good faith to try to resolve their conflicts" (Pg. 53, Guerard, 2008). If Quebec a more democratic style they could resolve their differences with Canada by finding similarities in their policies and practises in order to find common ground. Along this premise, all parties involved in the conflict including immigrants, younger generations, and older generations in Quebec and Canada could be heard and their opinions and feelings taken into consideration. This style is difficult to implement within such a diverse and broad context, although we believe that certain component of the democratic style would beneficial to this conflict. For instances, we think a level of compassion, open-mindedness and understanding for all those involved would lead to a much more peaceful resolve and less "bad blood" between the parties. That being said, we think relationship building would help this conflict immensely and that conversation and recognition of the emotions at play are important component of solving any conflict successfully although this concept of collaboration can be seen as a waste of time by some organisations (Guerard, 2008). "Creating positive and solid relationships with people is central to maintaining a harmonious organisational climate. It also gives individuals the chance to increase their power and influence" (Pg. 55, Guerard, 2008). This being said, Quebec does not have to renounce power, lose pride, or be considered a "lesser" province, but rather they could be seen as a peaceful province working hard to maintain culture and language. Through relationship building, Quebec could positively influence the other provinces of Canada to share and embrace their French culture and language, which is the ultimate goal. We feel that collaboration would be the most successful and beneficial conflict style for the conflict at hand in order to maintain the peaceful atmosphere that Canada is best known for.

- Kristian & Sophie



 

Theories of Conflict at Work

Conflict Styles Quebec has used in the past...
After separating from France Quebec felt denied of their culture and alienated from their motherland. As a result, they experienced feeling of weakness and sadness causing them to accommodate the English for a brief period in hopes of dominating the North American culture over time. Often people tend to abuse the good nature of accommodators by confusing goodness with weakness (Guerard, 2008). At this point, it was less important for Quebec to gain independence and more emphasis was put on gaining some element of power in this new land. The mother country did not envision a significant future for Quebec, even though its economy was finally starting to show a modest beginning (Gingras, 2008). As a result of the abandonment felt by Quebec, or New France at the time, they attempted to prove the doubters wrong and develop into a functioning and independent society in North America. Quebec City was born on July 3rd of 1608 and was beginning to gain an equal amount of power as the rest of Canada although the Quebec's feelings of separatism from their neighbouring provinces continued and they looked to other conflict styles in order to gain power and respect.
 


Conflict Styles Quebec is using in the present...
"When we are angry or frustrated we tend to adopt coercive behaviours. When people hurt us, we want to get even. Our emotions make us believe that if we hurt someone who's hurt us, our own pain will go away" (Guerard, 2008). Presently, Quebec is using the conflict style of competing in the utmost sense. Quebec is using power to resolve the conflict and they are struggling against the rest of the Canadian provinces in attempts to separate and become a nation of their own. Within this conflict style, the PQ party would be considered activists working to make a change. Activists such as Quebec are individuals or groups who position themselves as adversaries, they want things to change due to dissatisfaction with their current situation or because some of their values and principles are being compromised (Guerard, 2008). Quebec is ready to fight for what they believe in!

 

1995 Referendum

      Referendum is often seen as a crucial test of democratic legitimacy and an indispensable tool in ascertaining “the will of the people.” This applies particularly to momentous political decisions, especially those that have significant international impact and where an answer can be given in a binary fashion, such as the creation of independent states. (Oklopcic, 2012). As mentioned before, the motion to decide whether Quebec should secede from Canada was defeated by a very narrow margin of 49.42% "Yes" to 50.58% "No". With such a minute margin, one can only assume that about half of the people involved were for separatism, and where does the current status of Quebec leave those people? Most likely feeling hurt and alienated by the rest of Canada.