Excerpts
An independent committee is recommending extending Quebec's religious symbols ban to educators and administrators in public subsidized daycares, while providing an acquired right.
The idea is one of 50 recommendations included in a report published on Tuesday morning, looking at ways of strengthening secularism in the province.
"It's a hefty report," said Guillaume Rousseau, one of two lawyers heading the committee, who specified that the recommendations are aimed not only at strengthening secularism but addressing concerns of people on the ground.
The committee said it feels that banning religious symbols for daycare workers is necessary in light of testimonies it gathered and other findings it collected over the last six months.
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As for daycares, Pelchat said there were reports of children being chosen to fill daycare spots based on their ethnicity or because they belong to a certain religious group. In other instances, children were served Halal food in daycare regardless of their beliefs, to accommodate those who follow certain dietary laws.
"They receive public funds," Pelchat said, pointing to a climate of religiosity in certain daycares that she said is problematic.
The wearing of religious symbols in daycares only strengthens that connection to religion, Pelchat said, adding it's not up to the government to provide religious services.
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The report also says municipalities should enact measures to regulate religious events, following Premier François Legault's stated desire to ban public prayer.
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Québec solidaire said it wanted to take the time to read and analyze the report before commenting.