On November 4, 2010, professor Guy Laforest (Laval University, Quebec) visited our faculty.

After a welcome in the dean's office, the professor delivered a lecture on "Federalism and the Canadian State" to the teachers and students of the Department of International Studies in a rather informal and homely atmosphere.

First, the Professor asked the members of the audience to introduce themselves, and gave some useful pieces of advice to the students which may contribute to the success of their studies. For example, he emphasized that although we are students focusing on the field of international relations, it is essential to be familiar with the domestic politics of Hungary as well. In his view, it is also important to speak as many languages at an advanced level as we can. He also reminded us that instead of "Professor Google", we should choose the libraries and other reliable sources when we are looking for information on a particular topic.

Introducing his country, the professor talked about Canada's "age". For Europeans, Canada seems to be a young country but he refuted this claim. Canada considers itself as the heir of the British Empire: the Glorious Revolution is an important historic event for them, and their constitutional system is based on the Magna Charta. Although the legal dependence from the British Parliament ended only in 1982, Canada is one of those few states in which the constitution has not been modified since its foundation in 1867.

The professor also said that people see Canada as the most centralized country of the world, where actually, it is the most decentralized one. As the professor emphasized, in reality, the country is based on the harmony of centralization and decentralization. Each province is headed by a First Minister who decides about the local issues. These municipalities have more control over the financial questions of their area than the central government, so the administration can be truly called decentralized. There is a conference for the First Ministers, where both the central and local governments are represented, but the territorial governments have no influence on the central government, even the composition of the agenda and the leadership of the meeting is the task of the central government. This meeting may be convened when necessary. One of the major positive aspects of the Canadian administrative system is that it consists of a multi-centered Federation and the other is that the system is not hierarchical but horizontal.

To the question why Canada became a federal state, the professor replied with historical arguments. After the Civil War, Canada did not want to be part of the United States. One part of the population wanted to create a British independent nation on the territory, others, mainly French, did not want to be part of the British Empire, but even English leaders did not want the total area to belong to one empire. So the federal state emerged as a result of a consensus.

In Canada, the English and the Continental law and the corresponding cultures still exist together. The majority of the population is more English-speaking than French; this ratio is reversed only in Québec. This dualism can be traced in the fundamental character of the state as well. Québec held a referendum twice, in 1980 and in 1995, on seceding from Canada, but on both occasions it was vetoed by the majority, so Canada became the only democratic nation in which the minority voted twice against its own sovereignty. Diversity dominates many fields of Canadian life even today (for instance in the presence of the two different cultures, languages, and legal systems), but the common values do not let the differences pull the state back. After World War II, Canada became the main destination of immigrants instead of the US, which led to an increased multiculturalism in the country.

At the end of the lecture, unfortunately we had only a little time to ask questions, but the professor offered us the opportunity to ask questions via e-mail. We are very grateful for this gesture and for this very interesting presentation.