Source: Toronto Sun

Canada’s language watchdog is taking the CBC to court over its decision to cancel all its French-language programs produced in Windsor, Ont.

Official Languages Commissioner Graham Fraser announced Tuesday he is taking legal action against the public broadcaster and asking the Federal Court to confirm his authority to investigate complaints filed against CBC and Radio-Canada.

Fraser is also asking the court to confirm the Crown corporation is obligated to consider the impact of its decisions on the “development and vitality” of affected anglophone and francophone minority communities.

“It is imperative that we clarify the public broadcaster’s obligations under the Official Languages Act,” he said in a press release. “The principles set forth by the court regarding the interpretation and application of the act will have an impact not just on the French-speaking communities of southwestern Ontario, but on all official language minority communities across Canada.”

Fraser’s office received 876 complaints after Radio-Canada decided to cancel all local programming by its CBEF station, the only French-language station in the Windsor area.

The commissioner found Radio-Canada had breached the Official Languages Act because it had failed to consult the French-speaking community in southwestern Ontario beforehand, failed to consider the adverse impact of its decision on that community, and failed to mitigate the negative impact of its decision.

The public broadcaster refused to participate in the investigation.

“In our opinion, the commissioner of official languages has no jurisdiction over our programming,” CBC spokesman Marco Dube told QMI Agency.

CBC believes it is governed by the “substantial obligations” of the Broadcasting Act relating to official languages, he said. “Obligations that we fulfill vigorously and enthusiastically.”

The language watchdog, however, maintains it has jurisdiction over the public broadcaster but no enforcement power.

“We have no powers to sanction: we cannot levy fines, we cannot send people to jail,” he said. “So we are asking the court to force Radio-Canada to rectify the situation.”

© Toronto Sun