Federal government criticized for pulling Acadian from Francophonie summit

The federal government was criticized Wednesday for pulling a representative of an  Acadian group from its delegation at the Francophonie summit which opens in Quebec City on Friday.

"It is an affront, an insult to the Acadians," said Lucie Lebouthillier, director of the Société nationale des Acadiens.

"The Harper government does not recognize the importance of the Acadian people."

She made the comments after a news conference on the need for a Canadian policy on francophone immigration.

A delegate from the Société has been part of the Canadian delegation at recent summits but has not intervened in discussions with heads of state.

Lebouthillier said the group was informed of the government's decision in recent days but did not want to make it an issue in the federal election campaign.

"This is an issue that goes beyond it," she said.

"It gave us a chance to shine at the international level," Lebouthillier said of the group's involvement. "It reflects poorly on the decisions of the federal government when our organization is already internationally recognized."

Canada needs federal policy on francophone immigration Groups at the news conference want a federal policy on francophone immigration that mirrors that of Quebec.

"We need to take measures to support immigrants, measures that will help them find employment so that they stay within their communities," said Roukya Abdi Aden, of the federation of Acadian and francophone communities.

"Otherwise the demographic weight of the francophone countries will continue to decline."

The groups also asked that French be more widely used in international forums and events such as the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.