Learning from our mistakes
May 28, 2008The Canadian government announced last week that it will create a 29 million dollar grant program as redress for various shameful incidents in Canada's history, relating to the way Canada treated prospective and landed immigrants. For example, from 1885-1923 there was a Chinese head tax which was a fee charged for each person wishing to immigrate to Canada from China. There was also the Komagata Maru incident in 1914, when more than 350 prospective immigrants from India were held on a ship in Vancouver harbor because they would not be admitted to Canada. In addition, in 1939 more than 900 Jewish refugees trying to escape Nazi Germany on the steamship St. Louis were denied entry to Canada, among other countries, and were sent back to Nazi Germany, where it is estimated a third of the passengers were executed. Ten million dollars will go the Ukrainian Canadian Foundation of Taras Schevchenko as compensation for discrimination and the internment of Ukrainians and other East European ethnic communities during the First World War.
It is ironic that our government is issuing these grants in recognition of past discrimination, when at the same time it is proposing amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) that would make our immigration procedures susceptible once more to discrimination. The hallmark of IRPA as it now stands, is that everyone who chooses to submit an application to come live in Canada is entitled to fair and equitable consideration, according to objective criteria. If the new law is passed this will no longer be the case. The proposed amendments would empower the Minister of Immigration to issue instructions to Visa officers, as to which applications to process quickly, which applications to hold for processing at a later date and finally which type of applications to return to the applicant without any consideration at all. These instructions would not be based on IRPA Regulations but rather on the Minister's "opinion", this would make the selection process vulnerable to discretionary selection and personal bias.
The Minister argues that these amendments are necessary to clear out the current backlog of 600,000 skilled workers and to bring applicants whose skill sets are in high demand in Canada, to the front of the immigration queue.
But in fact, the law as it stands already contains the mechanisms to regulate the flow of economic immigrants and can therefore be used to reduce the current backlog. For example, the government could increase the pass-mark to limit the number of fresh applications, make use of "restricted occupations" to better match the flow of immigrants to the labor market needs in Canada and/or facilitate the use of "arranged employment", whereby an offer of employment from a Canadian employer can speed up the processing of the application of the skilled worker the employer would like to hire. It is not necessary for the government to insert discretionary measures into the system in order to reduce the backlog; it can do so using the current law, which is effective, clear and unbiased. If the government was concerned with redressing injustices committed against immigrants in the past, it would seek to preserve the impartiality of the current immigration process, so that injustices would not occur in the future, instead of compensating people after the injustices have already occurred.
14 Comments:
Well said. Tres Bien!
Very well said. Hope it may influence the policy makers.
My Family came to Canada in 1777, and has been here since. Acadian French on the East Coast until 1950's, I am Metis, on my mothers side, raised in the back woods of northern Canada by a bush pilot fur trader with grocery stores in competition with the Hudson's Bay company on Aboriginal (Indian in those days) Reservations accessible only by air.
Now, more civilized, in business in Vancouver, yet unable to bring together the rest of the Family here to our home and native land. Now we are celebrating our new Daughter in law from Albania and trying to unite her hardworking parents and two sisters here. We applied to sponsor them 16 months ago. I can't believe this. Where do we go to bring some momentum into the process of immigration for good people wanting to re-unite with family here in the greatest country on earth?
Delay in immigratiion appears to be a long driven attitude.It is unlikely to believe that such delaying is without any instruction by the Govt. of Canada . There must be some reason of such instrction for delaying immigration . We do not know the exact and or expressed reason ; experts will know and let us know .
i love Canada and i wanna be there
I sincerely feel that the comments made by David Cohen are fine and he has done what he could. However after listening to the video clip I get the feeling that the new law if passed would give immigration officers extraordinary powers to discriminate against candidates, be biased in their approach and even go to the extent of demanding a bribe! ! ! One never knows! If an immigration officer says, well Mr. Reed You dont look as handsome as Mr. Jones, so I refuse your application. The explanation he may end up giving is that Mr. Reed's qulifications are not suited tomatch canada's job market. This would really make lives miserable for all of us and strict measures need to be taken to make sure that this law is not passed. It would not do any good to the country whatsoever! There would be no transparency left in the selection process.
I've been living in the Philippines for the past 3 years. I moved to here to marry my girlfriend, start a family and then return to Canada. Everything has gone smooth with the exception of the "moving to Canada" part.
Our daughter, born in the Philippines, has just been awarded Canadian citizenship, however my Wife, was declined entry into Canada on a TRV because the officer in charge of her case decided that "he does not believe she has intent to return". We have return airline tickets.
I find this to be decidedly discriminatory since my wife has no criminal record and, a valid passport with no record whatsoever of attempting to enter any country and stay there illegally before.
Obviously, it's our dream to stay in Canada, but not illegally. At this point, the Canadian government would rather rip our family apart rather than try to accommodate us by using laws written with the intention of bringing families together.
I am much convinced of the concernes expressed by an anonymous regarding extra ordinary powers in the hands of an immigration officer.
Dear All,
I really respect the expertise of Mr. David Cohen and his way of thinking in Immigration. All of us are waiting for the out come. We never know what will be the future of Immigration and Immigration business. Canadian Immigration have a huge back log this is a fact and how to clear this back log is a big QUESTION MARK “?”. Hope the minister will come up with a fruitful outcome. Canada needs immigrants and the fact remains the same. I strongly believe that CANADA is the only country across the globe which offer an Immigration program to individuals where there are a lot of relaxation in documentation.
Though CANADA have a backlog the below furnished make Canadian Immigration more attractive and friendly for new Immigrants.
1. Canadian Immigration will not ask for intensive documentation like Detailed Job responsibility letter like DIAC.
2. Education from almost all the universities across the globe is accepted by CIC.
3. SOL list is very big compared to any other occupation list with other countries.
4. Unlike any other countries Canada was not looking for the CREAM to come down. No this is time for CANADA to accept the CREAM (Occupations in Demand or Pressure) only.
Learning from our Mistakes: This is a beautiful article or comment from Mr. David Cohen. Canada have a lot of credits in accepting Immigrats globally over a long period of time. WHEN YOU HAVE THAT ADVANTAGE, YOU SHOUT IT FROM ROOF TOPS.
Future of Canadian Immigration: I fully accept with Mr. David Cohen that the future of Canadian Immigration will be very much selective.
Under the new IRPA selection criteria, more points are awarded for arranged employment. The government agrees that, in order to meet Canada's skill needs, skilled worker applications should be given high priority and that, within the skilled worker group, those with arranged employment should be given the highest priority. The government will fast-track the applications of skilled workers with arranged employment. (Extract from cic.gc.ca)
Arranged Employment and Work permits will be the future of Canadian Immigration. Service Canada will have lot of files to clear. Performance and strength of Service Canada should be maintained as today. Service Canada is respected by any person working in Immigration.
Abdul Suhail K.P
"It is ironic that our government is issuing these grants in recognition of past discrimination, when at the same time it is proposing amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) that would make our immigration procedures susceptible once more to discrimination."
This is just one interpretation out of number a valid points of view. What David calls "discrimination" I would call "empowerment", ie the ability for Canada to choose who we want to enter Canada.
Interesting to notice correlation between the Immigration Law movement and the desire for the broadest scope possible as to who can enter Canada.
I guess the broad scope pays better.
"We never know what will be the future of Immigration and Immigration business."
very astute observation, ie there are two issues involved here- firstly there is immigration, and then there is the IMMIGRATION business. These are two distinct but obviously inter-related entities.
Actually it's very important to learn from our mistakes ... I'm an immigrant but I consider my immigration successful ... I meet people on daily basis who came to Canada and spend tremendous amount of money because they don't know about Canada !!
We as immigrants should share our experience with newcomers and people who are planning to come to Canada, to be able to settle smartly in their new country. Therefore, I decided to write my immigration experience in my blog: http://www.immigrationexpertise.com
Cheers,
Nabil
The strict election process pleases me - I do not want to sound discrimanatory but I want to live in a country where the powers have chosen the right people to maintain stability and wealth for it's chosen people. Would any of us feel any better if Canadian officials simply "opened the door" to anyone who seems vaguely suitable? I know I wouldn't. Once again I have to mention that these blogs are making me see how sometimes "mollycoddled" people can be around the world, expecting everything to be easy. There is a difference between discrimination and preferential selection processes that must be understood. And as for waiting so long and the possible extortionism from public officials, well.... coming from a country where you can get out of a $500 traffic fine by offering the traffic officer a coke, or waiting 4 months (after the 3 hour wait in line in a dirty crowded room) to receive a replacement ID book, even after paying the obligatory R200 (US$30) bribe to be put "in front of the queue"... let's just say "been there, done that, but never want to do it again."
It may not be always true that if immigration is easy then everyone will rush to leave their homeland for Canada.
Criteria for immigration is again probably always not to filter only competent persons or good fighters in the struggles of life.
It is also not always correct to think life a boxing arena. Life may be a boat full of opportunities always and there are so many trips throughout.
In fact the whole mankind is is working towards making life easy and to not make it difficult.
Besides, for any nation it is good to have good mixture of people so that society remains balanced with diversity . Otherwise society will loose its diversity thus variety and productivity.
Think that, if there is all Einsteins in the streets of Canada - how it will look like -where everyone will then only think about mass and energy and none will think about literature ,law and commerce ; none will be doing work in the patent or other offices and there will be no classes and teachers other than only smart mathemticians.
Filtering is probably to pursue some specific objectives of the state - not to welcome only dashings and competents. Besides each and every person at any level has some specific competency but all of them are not demanded at a time everywhere. But they are valued for the gross productivity of a nation. The Mission to moon also required motivated janiters.
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