Former Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe is calling for the resignation of embattled party leader Martine Ouellet, in an open letter signed by 21 former Bloc MPs.
Duceppe says Ouellet is weakening Quebec's voice in Ottawa and dividing sovereignists.
The damage Ouellet's "intransigeance" has caused to the party can be repaired, but she needs to leave for that to happen, he said.
"The crisis in the Bloc Québécois comes at a bad time," Duceppe wrote in the letter published Friday morning in Le Devoir.
Seven of the party's 10 MPs quit on Wednesday, citing Ouellet's leadership style.
The former leader said "Quebec is weak at the moment," with a federalist provincial government sidestepping any potential conflict with Ottawa.
He said the Bloc is the only true independent voice for the province in Parliament.
"Ouellet weakened the voice of Quebec in Ottawa in the very moment that it needs to be a strong voice," the letter said.
"We completely understand why seven MPs left."
They cited Ouellet's leadership style in announcing Wednesday they were quitting.
"The differences we have with our leader are unfortunately too great for a lasting peace to be considered," they said in a statement.
Ouellet has not backed down, despite calls for her resignation.
Bloc Québécois leader Martine Ouellet says she has support outside the party caucus. (Radio-Canada)
"I deplore what happened today. I think it's really regrettable," she told Radio-Canada soon after.
"But, you know, the Bloc Québécois is not just the Bloc Québécois caucus."
Ouellet said she had the support of other member groups, including its youth wing.
'It's done,' Duceppe says
In a televised interview on Radio-Canada on Thursday, Duceppe said it is now up to those MPs to take action by proposing solutions that could help reunite the party if Ouellet were to resign.
"The case has been made. It's done," Duceppe said, explaining he didn't understand why the leader hadn't left her post yet.
"I think the majority of the Bloc's members — I'm talking about members, not the people at the helm — are not OK with it."
The Bloc's impact on the national political scene has diminished since its heyday under Lucien Bouchard. In the 1993 election, the party secured 54 seats and formed the country's Official Opposition.
After taking over from Bouchard, Duceppe led the Bloc to five consecutive elections in which it won at least half of the seats in Quebec.
Duceppe also guided the party in the 2011 and 2015 elections, leading them to only four and 10 seats, respectively.
A funeral for Quebec's separatist movement?2:07
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