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.
CBC – Refugees Disappear While Waiting for Paperwork
The fate of two families sponsored by the Charlottetown Diocese as refugees is unknown, because the sponsoring church group lost touch with them while the Canadian government was processing their paperwork. The diocese, which covers all Roman Catholic churches on Prince Edward Island, has been working for several years to privately sponsor three refugee families. All three of those efforts ended in failure. One of those families ended up moving to Australia, but the church group lost touch with the other two families while waiting for Citizenship and Immigration Canada to approve them. Diocese refugee sponsorship coordinator Dan Doran, who worked with CIC, said the Canadian government needs to provide more help with private refugee sponsorship. He said refugees sometimes have to wait as long as five years.
CBC – Erica Barnes Gets Citizenship Papers and Apology from Canada
A teenage girl’s six-year-long battle for Canadian citizenship is finally over after Immigration Canada admitted it made a mistake and lost her approval due to a technical error. […] In an email to the CBC, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) said Erica Dipuo Barnes’s citizenship was approved in 2013, but not entered into its global case management system due to a technical error. Spokeswoman Nancy Caron said the error has been fixed and Barnes’s citizenship papers are now on their way. “We recognize that this has caused undue frustration. We apologize for the error and delay.” Barnes is both pleased and angry after the mistake made by Canadian officials in South Africa meant she could not work, study or even get medical care for the last year.
Globe and Mail – Tightening of Foreign Worker Rules Affecting Supply of Doctors
Ottawa’s bid to crack down on abuse of the temporary foreign worker program is stymieing efforts to bring in a class of highly skilled labourers Canada badly needs: doctors. Physician recruiters across the country say the red tape and fees now associated with the program are causing major headaches for international physicians who want to fill vacancies in Canada’s hospitals and medical offices, especially in rural communities where doctor shortages are common. […] For international physicians, the TFW program has functioned as both a bridge to permanent residency and a means to work in Canada temporarily or while continuing to live in the United States. But since most are independent contractors, there is no for-profit company ready and willing to pay the fees and plow through the paperwork as there would be in the case of other high-skilled professions. That work is often left to health authorities or local physician recruitment offices, neither of which are flush with cash.
Metro News – Canada Border Services Deports Man to Congo in Secret
Behind a grey metal door on the arrivals level of Pearson Airport’s terminal 3, a man who had lived in Canada for 16 years was held and deported in secret this week. The Canada Border Services Agency took Prince Debase Betoukoumessou, 52, from his six children and put him on a plane for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Monday evening. But the government agency wouldn’t confirm his deportation had even occurred, citing privacy concerns. The only reason anyone knows of Betoukoumessou’s fate is because his family called Torstar News Service the day before he was sent off to one of the most dangerous countries in the world. […] Clayton Ruby, a prominent civil rights lawyer says there is no blanket ban that would prevent the CBSA from releasing immigration and refugee information. […] Indeed, the CBSA website has dozens of news releases naming people it has arrested and detained. […] Canada has a moratorium on deportations to the DRC, but because Betoukoumessou is considered to have been involved in human rights abuses, the ban doesn’t apply to him.
Metro News – Immigration Minister Promotes Entrepreneur Visa
Canada’s immigration minister heralded on Wednesday the federal government’s 16-month-old visa program for entrepreneurs, which has accepted its first two applicants. Chris Alexander told a Vancouver news conference that the Start-up Visa program has generated enormous interest, though he couldn’t specify how many applications have been received. “We think we’ve done more than all other countries to make sure our programs are cutting edge,” he said, adding several applications are nearing completion. […] Alexander said the government is trading on its reputation for “doing immigration well” as it aims to persuade talented business people from India to Latin America and Europe to move to Canada.
CBC – Temporary Foreign Worker Changes Raise Ire of Film, TV Industry
Representatives for Canada’s film and TV industry are meeting with Immigration Minister Chris Alexander in Vancouver today to discuss recent changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program which they say have lumped them into the same category as employers who hire foreign low-skilled workers in the fast-food industry. Foreign actors and directors who want to film in Canada are also being subject to a $1,000 fee per worker and a 15-day waiting period to obtain a work permit, under new rules unveiled by the federal government at the end of June. […] The federal government recently allowed foreign musicians who want to perform in Canada for a limited time to come here without the need for Canadian employers to pass a Labour Market Impact Assessment to prove the need to hire a foreign worker over a Canadian one, saving them time and money.
