Nationality, State Succession, and the Right of Option: The Case of Québec

Abstract

SummarySome advocates of Québec separatism claim that Quebecers could retain their Canadian nationality following Québec’s secession from Canada. This article examines international nationality law to test the accuracy of that claim. A device known as an option exists in international law as a means of allowing individuals to determine for themselves the effect of state succession upon their nationality. This article considers the place of options in the law of state succession, both as it now stands and as proposed by the International Law Commission’s Draft Articles on the Nationality of Natural Persons in Relation to the Succession of States, 1997. Four possible arguments in favour of a Québécois option are given, the most convincing of which arises by analogy to state practice in the use of plebiscites. This argument suggests that international law would require the state of Québec to grant all Canadians affected by Québec’s secession a right to opt for Canadian nationality instead of Québécois nationality with the caveat that those opting to retain Canadian nationality could face expulsion from Québec. Finally, the article suggests that the development of human rights in international law should extend to recognize a true human right of option in cases of state succession. Regrettably, the ILC Draft hinders, rather than encourages, this desirable development.