an alliance of university, community, and government partners dedicated to fostering welcoming communities and promoting the integration of immigrants and minorities across Canada
The Media Roundup provides links to recent and archived articles, in both English and French, on immigration and diversity appearing in the national and local news. Some international content is also included. Articles are updated weekly.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada News Release – Strengthening Citizenship, Speeding Up Processing
Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander today announced that recent changes to the Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act are already paying big dividends: citizenship backlogs are at their lowest level in more than two years, and applications are now being processed more efficiently than ever. The government’s overhaul of the Citizenship Act saw the citizenship decision-making process move from three steps to one. This change and others in the Act are designed to improve program integrity and safeguard the value of Canadian citizenship. The number of decision makers has also increased which will ensure that citizenship applications are processed more quickly and backlogs are reduced.
Toronto Star – Should Kids of Filipino Caregivers Get More Help Not Less?
A rumoured move by Ottawa to make it harder for Filipino caregivers to bring relatives to Canada could deprive their children — already struggling to adjust here — of the very adults who can serve as key mentors and role models, warns a Canadian expert on immigration from the island nation. Instead, Canada should offer Filipino children more help with school and higher learning — not less — including more mentorship programs, more ESL courses, more scholarships for post-secondary education, more workshops on student aid and more sensitivity training for teachers, says York University Geography professor Philip Kelly. Kelly was responding to comments this summer by federal cabinet ministers hinting the live-in caregiver program, which is filled largely by Filipinos, may be “modernized” because it has “mutated” into a pipeline for families to reunite.
Toronto Star – Somalia’s Police Boss Called “War Criminal” in Canada
Mogadishu’s new police commissioner was once wanted in Canada as a “war criminal” after a refugee and immigration board concluded he was “responsible for the ruthless torture of prisoners” while serving with Somalia’s police force during the 1980s. Mohammed Hassan Ismail Farah fled Somalia as the Siad Barre government collapsed in 1991, living for seven months in the United States before crossing into Canada to make a refugee claim. According to federal court documents obtained by the Toronto Star, he testified at an immigration and refugee board hearing that he feared persecution if forced to return to Mogadishu and denied claims made by government witnesses that he had beaten prisoners and used electrical shocks during interrogations. The Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) questioned the veracity of Farah’s claim, turning down his application in 1993. […] The “most wanted list” was controversial when announced, and in December, Canada’s Privacy Commissioner criticized the CBSA for “potentially misleading” the public by using the label of “war criminal,” since a finding by immigration officials is not the same as a criminal conviction.
Toronto Star – Court Puts a Hold on Ajax Man’s Deportation with Aboriginal Daughter
A Guyanese-born man has been granted a last-minute reprieve from deportation so he can stay in Canada with his daughter, a Canadian aboriginal girl for whom he is the sole guardian. On Friday, the Federal Court of Canada held an emergency hearing into Curtis Lewis’s plea, and stayed his deportation to Guyana until a government tribunal decides whether to reopen his appeal to restore his permanent resident status. […] The Canada Border Services Agency had scheduled Lewis’s deportation with his daughter, even though leaving Canada would have meant the girl would lose her connection with her aboriginal community, culture and history for an uncertain life in Guyana. “We are certainly relieved by the court’s decision,” said Lewis’s lawyer, Allison Rhoades, of Toronto’s Refugee Law Office. “That said, it’s still pretty shocking that the federal government came this close to effectively removing a First Nations child from her own country, without really giving a moment’s thought to her unique rights and interests as a First Nations child.”
Toronto Star – Federal Agencies Hit by Privacy Breach 101 Times in Past 4 Months
The federal government has quietly logged 101 breaches of Canadians’ private information over the last four months, the Star has learned. Numbers released by Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien’s office reveal his office was informed of a privacy breach an average of almost once a day since April 1. The majority of these breaches occurred in two departments: Veterans’ Affairs Canada (38) and Citizenship and Immigration Canada (31). […] While the affected departments are known, the circumstances around the privacy breaches have not been released.
Citoyenneté et Immigration Canada – Communiqué – Renforcer la citoyenneté, accélérer le traitement des demandes
Le ministre de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration du Canada, Chris Alexander, a annoncé aujourd’hui que les changements apportés récemment à la Loi renforçant la citoyenneté canadienne portent déjà leurs fruits. En effet, l’arriéré dans le traitement des demandes de citoyenneté est à son plus bas depuis plus de deux ans et les demandes sont maintenant traitées plus rapidement que jamais. La réforme apportée par le gouvernement à la Loi sur la citoyenneté a modifié le processus décisionnel en matière de citoyenneté, lequel comprend dorénavant deux étapes plutôt que trois. Ce changement et d’autres modifications à la Loi visent à améliorer l’intégrité du programme et à protéger la valeur de la citoyenneté canadienne. Le nombre de décideurs a également augmenté; ainsi, les demandes de citoyenneté seront traitées plus rapidement, et les arriérés diminueront. Il est prévu qu’en 2015-2016 le délai de traitement des demandes de citoyenneté sera inférieur à un an. On s’attend également à ce que l’arriéré actuel des demandes soit réduit de plus de 80 pour 100.
