From the BBC:
“What
to know about Louise Arbour, Canada's next governor general”
Prime
Minister Mark Carney has named a bilingual lawyer and former United Nations
high commissioner for human rights as Canada's new governor general. Louise
Arbour, 79, will soon replace current Governor General Mary Simon, who became
the first indigenous person to hold the role when she was appointed five years
ago. The governor general serves as the representative of the Canadian Crown,
currently King Charles III, in the commonwealth country and acts as head of
state on the monarch's behalf. They typically serve five-year terms. Carney has
been under pressure to appoint a governor general that speaks both English and
French - Canada's two official language - after Simon was criticised for her
lack of French proficiency. On Tuesday, the prime minister described Arbour as
a Canadian whose entire life has been dedicated to "sound judgement, deep
learning and an unwavering commitment to the rule of law".
Who
is Louise Arbour? Arbour
was born in Montreal, Quebec, and had previously served as a justice on the
Supreme Court of Canada, the country's highest court. Outside of Canada,
Arbour served as chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunals for
the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. Carney called this role "her most
consequential" as a jurist. Arbour is credited for making history
for the first-ever indictment of a sitting head of state, former Yugoslavian
president Slobodan Milošević, as well as her prosecution of sexual assaults as
crimes against humanity. She is also credited for securing the first
conviction for genocide since the 1948 Genocide Convention in the case of
Rwanda. Arbour later served as the United Nations human rights
commissioner for four years, from 2004 to 2008. Carney said Arbour "has
held nearly every office a Canadian jurist can hold, and several that no
Canadian has held before". In 2007, Arbour received the Order of Canada,
the country's highest civilian honour, for her contributions to the justice
system both in Canada and internationally. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday,
Arbour said that she believes the constitutional monarchy in Canada has served
the country "extremely well" and that it has provided continuity
throughout its history.
Arbour's
appointment marks the end of Simon's term as governor general, which has been
described as "historic" as no indigenous person had held the role
before. Simon, who is Inuit and born in northern Quebec, previously served as
the ambassador to Denmark and as president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, Canada's
national Inuit organisation. She is bilingual in English and Inuktitut - but
not French, saying in the past that she had been denied the opportunity to
learn the language while attending a federal day school in Quebec. Simon was
criticised for her French ability throughout her term. In 2024, she released a
statement responding to critical media reports following a trip to Quebec,
where she spoke mostly in English. In that statement, she said she understood
"the importance of French to French-speaking Canadians as a critical part
of their cultures and identities". On Tuesday, Carney called Simon an
"exemplary" governor general who "carried forward a lifetime of
advocacy for Inuit rights, for indigenous self determination, and for the
preservation of our indigenous languages, cultures and identities". Prior
to Simon, Julie Payette, an astronaut, engineer, scientific broadcaster and
corporate director, served in the role from 2017 to 2021. The last governor
general who did not come from the province of Quebec was David Johnston, who
was born in Ontario. A former law professor and principal and vice-chancellor
of McGill University, he served seven years in the role, from 2010 to 2017. A
governor general's responsbilities include constitutional duties such as
swearing the prime minister and cabinet into office, the presentation of
honours, and military duties including recognising the contribution of the
armed forces.
Canada
has a Governor-General because it is one of the 15 Commonwealth Realms (the
others are: Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Belize, Grenada,
Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, and the United
Kingdom) that have their own Monarch inside the Commonwealth of Nations.
The
Canadian Crown is represented by the Governor-General (French: gouverneure
générale du Canada) who is the Canadian Monarch’s Federal Representative inside
Canada since the Canadian Monarch usually lives in London, the United Kingdom.
The
Governor-General is decided by the Canadian Monarch at the advice of the
Canadian Prime Minister.
The
Governor-General of Canada is higher in Power than the Canadian Prime Minister,
but lower than the Canadian Monarch.
The
Governor-General of Canada carries out both Constitutional Duties and
Ceremonial Duties on behalf of the Canadian Monarch.
The
Constitutional Duties include: Appointing Lieutenant Governors, Supreme Court
Justices, and Senators; Signing Orders-In-Council; Summoning, Proroguing, and
Dissolving the Federal Parliament; Granting Royal Assent to Bills; Calling
Elections; and Signing Commissions for Officers of the Canadian Armed Forces.
The
Ceremonial Duties include: Delivering the Speech from the Throne at the State
Opening of Parliament; Accepting Letters of Credence from Incoming Ambassadors;
and Distributing Honors, Decorations, and Medals.
This
new Governor-General will be Bilingual in French and English (unlike the
previous one) which are the 2 Official Languages of Canada. ^
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