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Archive 1Archive 2Archive 3

Anachronistic flag wavers

http://www.sfu.ca/~aheard/324/Independence.html

CANADIAN INDEPENDENCE (C) Andrew Heard 1990 Canada's transition from a self-governing British colony into a fully independent state was an evolutionary process, which arose in such a gradual fashion that it is impossible to ascribe independence to a particular date. The Supreme Court of Canada reflected this uncertainty when it said in Re Offshore Mineral Rights of British Columbia that Canada's "sovereignty was acquired in the period between its separate signature of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 and the Statute of Westminster, 1931..."[1] However, the development of this independence had its roots before 1919, and was not actually completed until well after 1931. As Frank Scott has argued, "Never at any time in [1919-39] was the full international personality of the Dominions, as distinct from Great Britain, established beyond equivocation".[2] Indeed, symbolically-important legal traces of Canada's colonial status were only shed with the passing of the Canada Act[3] by the British Parliament in 1982. That Act not only provided for the first time a process by which Canada's basic constitutional laws could be legally amended without action by the British Parliament, but it also declared that no British law passed thereafter would apply to Canada. There are still two final vestiges of colonialism to be eliminated, those found in ss.55 and 56 of the 1867 Constitution Act which provide for the reservation and disallowance of federal legislation. Of course Canada has been an independent nation for a number of decades, and these shadows of her former status are nothing more than anomalies which illustrate how the legal provisions of the Canadian constitution failed to keep pace with the political developments which propelled Canada to full statehood.

At its inception in 1867, Canada's colonial status was marked by political and legal subjugation to British Imperial supremacy in all aspects of government - legislative, judicial, and executive. The Imperial Parliament at Westminster could legislate on any matter to do with Canada and could override any local legislation, the final court of appeal for Canadian litigation lay with the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London, the Governor General had a substantive role as a representative of the British government, and ultimate executive power was vested in the British Monarch - who was advised only by British Ministers in its exercise. Canada's independence came about as each of these subordinations was eventually removed. What is remarkable about this whole process is that it was achieved with a minimum of legislative amendments. Much of Canada's independence arose from the development of new political arrangements, many of which have been absorbed into judicial decisions interpreting the constitution - with or without explicit recognition. Canada's passage from being an integral part of the British Empire to being an independent member of the Commonwealth richly illustrates the way in which fundamental constitutional rules have evolved through the interaction of constitutional convention, international law, and municipal statute and case law.

Just a thought. Keith-264 (talk) 13:29, 29 June 2013 (UTC)

WP:DEADHORSE. Resolute 15:37, 29 June 2013 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Civility"I can see that I'm wasting my time relating facts to you so I'll leave it there." I left it there, this is for everyone else.Keith-264 (talk) 15:54, 29 June 2013 (UTC)
I realize you are obsessed with getting your own way here, but at some point, you simply have to accept that your POV is not preferred. Resolute 16:15, 29 June 2013 (UTC)

Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Military historyKeith-264 (talk) 16:25, 29 June 2013 (UTC)

Oh Jesus... you're still on that absurd argument that dominions that gained nationhood decades before WWI should be held equivalent to a US State? Facepalm Facepalm. Resolute 19:33, 29 June 2013 (UTC)
Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Military historyKeith-264 (talk) 20:30, 29 June 2013 (UTC)
" ... that gained nationhood ..." - I think you may be confusing 'nationhood' for statehood. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.149.247.9 (talk) 19:24, 5 January 2018 (UTC)