The Prime Minister's Office stated Tuesday that claims the governor general designate, Michaelle Jean, supports Quebec sovereignty are untrue, despite Jean's silence on the issue.

"[Jean and her husband Daniel Lafond] both chose to be citizens of Canada, to come here and to adopt our country as their own," Scott Reid, chief spokesman for the prime minister, told the Canadian Press.

"Sadly, their belief in Canada has made them targets of a deliberate and orchestrated smear campaign by hard line separatists."

Two protesters outside Parliament Hill on Tuesday had not made up their minds, but wanted to hear from Jean herself whether she stood behind a united Canada.

"I need to hear her say that she'll become a Canadian citizen solely, and that she will be totally dedicated to Canada," protester Nancy Shroeder told CTV News.

Reports of Jean's support for Quebec sovereignty come largely from a documentary made 12 years ago by her husband. Critics point to a scene where several people seated around a table raise their glasses to independence, including Jean and former FLQ member Pierre Vallieres.

A companion book to the film, written by Lafond, quotes Jean as saying that "one doesn't give independence; one takes it." It's unclear what her comments are referring to.

Media consultant Laura Peck says Jean must comment on the controversy and make her views known, or risk a further decline in public opinion.

"She would feel so much better in her whole heart if she would just come clean and tell the truth. It's Crisis Communications 101," Peck, vice president of McLoughlin Media, told CTV News.

Many callers to a Montreal radio station had clearly decided Jean is a separatist and were quick to express their anger.

"She supported a movement that cost me many members of my family, who were forced out of Quebec," said one caller to CJAD. "My life was altered forever because of it."

Other callers, who felt the government failed carry out a full background check on Jean, voiced anti-Liberal sentiment.

"I think Rideau Hall should be turned into a prison for corrupt Liberals, or better yet a daycare," one caller said.

Jean will assume the office of governor general on Sept. 27.

With a report from CTV's Rosemary Thompson in Ottawa