Alberta to hold referendum on remaining in Canada or separation
Hızlı Bakış
- Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced a referendum on the province's future in Canada, offering a choice between remaining a province or starting a legal process for separation.
- The vote follows a growing independence movement fueled by a sense of being overlooked by Ottawa.
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Alberta will hold a referendum on whether the province should remain in Canada or move ahead with a second binding vote on separation, marking the first significant test of the country's unity in decades.
Thursday's announcement by Premier Danielle Smith comes after a citizen-led petition calling for separation gathered more than 300,000 signatures early this year and a separate petition advocating for Alberta to stay gathered more than 400,000.
A restive independence movement has been growing in the oil-rich province, built on a long-held sense that Alberta is overlooked by decision-makers in Ottawa.
Smith, in a televised address, said the question being put to Albertans this coming autumn will be be: "Should Alberta remain a province of Canada or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?"
The premier said she herself will vote in favour of Alberta remaining a part of Canada.
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