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 – Canada’s New Asylum System a Success
In the year since comprehensive reforms to Canada’s asylum system took effect, the number of new asylum claims from safe countries has decreased to historic lows, ensuring that genuine refugees – truly vulnerable people from some of the world’s most volatile areas – receive faster and fairer protection, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander announced today. Asylum claims from countries that historically produced high numbers of unfounded claims have dropped by a dramatic 87 per cent. The overall reduction in asylum claims has already resulted in greater than anticipated savings to Canadian taxpayers of more than $600 million in provincial and federal government welfare, education and health-care costs. Overall savings are projected to be more than $1.6 billion over five years.
Globe and Mail – Greece Faces Criticism After Boat Crammed With Immigrants Capsizes
A top European human rights official criticized Greece on Wednesday following a deadly boat accident involving immigrants in the east Aegean Sea, some of whom claimed that the Greek coast guard was turning them away. Ten people were still missing after a fishing boat crammed with immigrants capsized in the dark Monday near the tiny Greek island of Farmakonisi while being towed by a coast guard vessel.
Globe and Mail – Filipinos Find Opportunity and Community in Canada’s North
Despite a climate radically different than home, Filipinos have flocked to Yukon largely for service-sector jobs with comparatively high wages that allow them to send money back home, where average household income is $5,000 a year. They’re part of the changing face of Canada’s North at a time when development boosts demand for labour and the chance for a firm foothold in Canada. There were 630 Philippines-born people among Yukon’s 35,000 residents in 2011, Statistics Canada says, though locals say the true number could be triple that by now. Along with another 860 Filipinos counted in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut in 2011, Filipinos are the largest foreign-born cohort in the North.
Canada.com – Border Officials Got $15M to Ramp Up Efforts to Strip Refugee Status; Muslim Brotherhood Among Targets
The federal government has dedicated more than $15 million over four years to stripping refugee status from those no longer deemed worthy of protection and planned to target members of the Muslim Brotherhood in particular. According to a briefing note prepared for Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney when he took on the portfolio last summer, the government planned to review the files of Egyptian nationals granted refugee status over their membership in the previously outlawed group “in light of the Arab spring.” But by mid-July when Blaney took on the job, Muslim Brotherhood president Mohamed Morsi had already been ousted from power and the group was later returned to its former status.
Globe and Mail – Bankrupt Detroit Takes Aim at Immigrants as Means to Increase Population
Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan announced plans Thursday to seek federal help in bringing 50,000 immigrants to the bankrupt city over five years as part of a visa program aimed at those with advanced degrees or exceptional abilities in science, business or the arts. Under the plan, which is expected to be formally submitted to federal authorities soon, immigrants would be required to live and work in Detroit, a city that has fallen to 700,000 residents from 1.8 million in the 1950s. […] The proposal comes as part of a push in Midwestern cities – including Chicago, St. Louis and Dayton, Ohio – to jump-start growth by attracting entrepreneurial immigrants.
Toronto Star – Immigrant Dreams Die with Deceased Nannies
Immigration Canada terminates immigration applications when the principal applicant is deceased and a decision is still pending, with no exception for live-in caregivers. “But the live-in caregiver program is unique because the applicant has to make a commitment and sacrifice before they receive something tangible in return,” said Toronto immigration lawyer Guidy Mamann. […] “They come and spend two years looking after others’ children to allow their own family to come here. They have done their end of the bargain. It’s like we owe it to their kids.” Although there are only about a dozen such cases a year, Mamann and other advocates said immigration officials should not stop processing these applications, leaving the deceased applicant’s dependants in limbo.
