By Elishya Perera
MONTRÉAL, Québec (CU)_Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his focus is on “getting through the pandemic” and not on the Royal family, and will therefore not be drawn into a debate about Canada’s ties to the monarchy.
“I wish all the members of the Royal Family the very best but my focus, as we’ve said, is getting through this pandemic,” the Prime Minister said, during a news conference on Tuesday (9 March). “If people want to later talk about constitutional change and shifting our system of government, that’s fine. They can have those conversations. But right now, I’m not having those conversations.”
He added that his government “will always stand up against systemic racism and intolerance”, but refused to comment on the allegations of racism made by Meghan Markle and Prince Harry against the British Royal Family over the weekend.
In the two-hour bombshell interview, Meghan claimed that a member of the royal family raised concerns regarding how dark her son Archie’s skin might be, and that it was for this reason that he was denied the title of prince. However, later it was clarified that these comments did not come from the Queen nor her husband, Prince Philip.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, PM Trudeau was inquired on how he reconciled his support for the monarchy, given his pledge to decolonise Canadian laws and policies.
The Prime Minister noted that while Canada’s institutions, including the Parliament, are built on systems of colonialism, systematic racism and discrimination, however, the answer is not to suddenly get rid of these institutions and start over.
“The answer is to look very carefully at those systems.”
The interview, which aired in the United States on Sunday, led to the Bloc Québécois and the NDP to claim the allegations are further proof that the monarchy should be abolished.
“I don’t see the benefit of the monarchy in Canadians’ lives and now even more so with concerns about racism in the institution,” NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said.
However, the Conservatives have defended the Royal family, with Party leader Erin O’Toole saying the party has always had a strong belief in the country’s constitutional monarchy, the institutions of Parliament, and Canada’s democratic process.
Meanwhile, Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc said the federal government will soon announce the process it wishes to use to select the next representative for the Queen in Canada, following the resignation of former Governor General Julie Payette, earlier this year.
