Fred Cameron

Fred Cameron (born in 1919 or 1920) is a politician in the Canadian province of Manitoba. During the 1980s, he was the most prominent advocate in that province for the separation from Canada of the four western provinces, although support for this movement was never as strong in Manitoba as it was in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.

Cameron served as a soldier in World War II. He entered politics in the 1980s, as a member of the Western Canada Concept, a party which sought independence for all of Canada's provinces and territories west of Ontario. The federal WCC was originally led by Doug Christie, a controversial lawyer who has worked for holocaust deniers and others on the extreme right.

Not all WCC members were supporters of Christie: he was, at one stage, forbidden from holding a membership in the Alberta wing of the party. Cameron, however, appears to have been both his personal friend and political ally.

Cameron contested a by-election in the Winnipeg riding of Fort Rouge in October 1984. He received 186 votes, finishing last in a field of six candidates, which also included Liberal leader Sharon Carstairs and Progressive Party leader Sidney Green). It is probable that Cameron was the Manitoba WCC's leader at this time.

Cameron was certainly the party's leader by time of the 1986 general election. He ran in the Winnipeg riding of Concordia and received 204 votes, against 4525 for winning candidate Gary Doer of the New Democratic Party. There were five WCC candidates in this election, the minimum needed for the party to be officially listed on the electoral ballots. Also in 1986, Cameron worked on the mayoral campaign of Russell Doern, formerly a New Democratic Party cabinet minister, but subsequently an anti-bilingualism activist.

In 1987, a number of disgruntled figures in the Alberta WCC founded a new organization, known as the Western Independence Party. Provincial branches of this party soon emerged throughout western Canada, and Cameron became the leader of the Western Independence Party of Manitoba. The Manitoba WCC seems to have disappeared at about the same time; it is unclear if the party simply changed its name, or if there was a formal split.

The WIP ran 16 candidates in the 1988 election, well above the number nominated by the WCC in 1986. Cameron again ran in Concordia, and received 114 votes, finishing fifth out of six candidates. He also ran as an independent candidate in the 1988 federal election, and received 308 votes in the riding of Winnipeg—Transcona.

The WIP ran six candidates in the 1990 provincial election. Cameron, still the WIP leader, ran again in Concordia and received 168 votes. The Manitoba WIP stopped contesting elections after this time, although it has not entirely disappeared as an organization.

Cameron has contributed a number of letters to the "Western Separatist Papers". In these letters, he has lamented the quality of Canada's current military and opposed affirmative action programs.

In 2001, Cameron spoke at a western separatist meeting in Saskatchewan. A report described him as still "a true believer in the separatist movement".

In 2004, Cameron advocated that Canada eliminate the federal position of Governor-General, as well as the provincial Lieutenant-Governorships.

Electoral record (partial)

References