Monique Vézina, (born July 13, 1935) is a former

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician. She now works with a

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in the field of international development. Vézina was born in

Rimouski Rimouski ( ) is a city in Quebec, Canada. Rimouski is located in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region, at the mouth of the Rimouski River. It has a population of 48,935 (as of 2021). Rimouski is the site of Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR), t ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

. Prior to entering politics, she worked for numerous community agencies in the fields of education, family services and women's rights in the Lower

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

valley region of

. In 1976, she became chair of the ''Federation of the Caisses Populaires Desjardins'' (a credit union organization) in her region, and joined the executive of the Quebec-wide Mouvement Desjardins. From 1978 to 1982, she served as a member of the ''Conseil supérieur de l’éducation'' and as vice-president of the ''Régie de l’assurance automobile du Québec''. Vézina entered politics in the 1984 general election being elected as the Progressive Conservative

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for Rimouski—Témiscouata. She was one of a number of

Quebec nationalists Quebec nationalism or Québécois nationalism is a feeling and a political doctrine that prioritizes cultural belonging to, the defence of the interests of, and the recognition of the political legitimacy of the Québécois nation. It has been ...

recruited to the PC Party as part of the creation of a coalition that could win power. She was appointed to the first

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney ( ; born March 20, 1939) is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studied political s ...

as Minister of External Relations (a junior portfolio to the Secretary of State for External Affairs), and as Minister responsible for La Francophonie. Her focus in Cabinet was in the field of international development. In 1986, she became

Minister of Supply and Services Minister of Supply and Services was an office in the Cabinet of Canada from 1969 to 1996. On July 12, 1996, office of the Minister of Supply and Services and the office of the Minister of Public Works were abolished and replaced with the office of ...

. From 1987 to 1993, she held a succession of junior portfolios as a

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. I ...

first for Transport (1987–1988), for Employment and Immigration (1988–1993), and for Seniors (1988–1993). From January to June 1993, she again served as Minister for External Relations and Minister responsible for ''

la Francophonie LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

''. She decided not to remain in politics following Mulroney's retirement, and left Cabinet in June 1993 when

Kim Campbell Avril Phaedra Douglas "Kim" Campbell (born March 10, 1947) is a Canadian politician, diplomat, lawyer, and writer who served as the 19th prime minister of Canada from June 25 to November 4, 1993. Campbell is the first and so far only female ...

became PC leader and prime minister. Vézina did not run in the 1993 general election. After leaving politics, Vézina remained active in the field of international development as a member of the board of directors of the

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

-based ''Centre d’éducation et de coopération internationale'' from 1994 to 1997. In 1995, she chaired the ''Commission des aînés'' and the ''Commission nationale sur l’avenir du Québec'', bodies set up by the ''

Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois (; ; PQ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establis ...

'' government of Quebec in preparation for the 1995 Quebec referendum. The next year, she was elected ''Patriote de l’année'' by the Quebec nationalist ''

Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste The Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society (french: Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste) is an institution in Quebec dedicated to the protection of Quebec francophone interests and to the promotion of Quebec sovereignism. It is known as the oldest patriotic ass ...

de Montréal'', and was named a member of ''l’Ordre du mérite coopératif québécois''. In 1998, Vézina caused controversy in

English Canada Canada comprises that part of the population within Canada, whether of British origin or otherwise, that speaks English. The term ''English Canada'' can also be used for one of the following: #Describing all the provinces of Canada tha ...

by stating that she had never been a Canadian federalistbr>
Vézina currently serves as vice-president of the 'Conseil des relations internationales de Montréal'', president of the ''Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois'' and of the ''Conférence des peuples de langue française''.

Honours

In 2007, she was made an Officer of the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec, termed officially in French as ''l'Ordre national du Québec'', and in English abbreviation as the Order of Quebec, is an order of merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Govern ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vezina, Monique 1935 births Women members of the House of Commons of Canada Living people Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Officers of the National Order of Quebec People from Rimouski Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs Women in Quebec politics Members of the 24th Canadian Ministry 20th-century Canadian women politicians Women government ministers of Canada