Thursday, July 7, 2011
On July 7, 1969, Canada’s House of Commons passes the Official Languages Act, declaring both English and French the official languages of Canada, giving further expression to the country’s concept of “two founding nations.” The Act requires that all federal institutions provide their services in English and French, including that all labeling and signage be in both languages. One goal is try to bridge the two communities and create a bilingual Canada rather than two separate enclaves. The Act receives the support of all federal political parties. Over the years, polling data has shown that the vast majority of Canada’s French-speaking minority supports the policy, while as low as 32 percent of English-speakers have at times.
Last month, the Canadian International Developmental Agency (CIDA) pledged $5.6 million to the government of Sri Lanka’s implementation of its National Languages Policy. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed establishing a plan for Canada to support and lend its expertise to Sri Lanka as it implements a bilingual language policy that incorporates both Sinhala and Tamil as the official languages. After 26 years of civil war that ended in May 2009, the policy is seen as a major step toward bringing the communities closer together.
