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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.
News 1130 – International Student Enrolment on the Rise in Vancouver: VSB
International student enrolment is up in Vancouver, even though the education dispute delayed the start of the school year. This year, 1,467 students came to the city through the international student program at a cost of $13,000 per student to attend classes. That number is up from 1,358 full-time students for the 2013/14 school year and 1,212 students for the 2012/13 year. Mike Lombardi with the Vancouver School Board says the program is in place in all of the secondary schools and many of the elementary schools in the city. “We’ve got the largest international educational program in Canada. This year the projected numbers were close to 1,500 and we’ve pretty well hit that mark. So, even though we had the job action, we only lost 26 of our students so the program is proceeding.” […] He adds international students brought in just under $20 million for the district this year.
Toronto Star – Missing Mail Leaves Syrian Family in Immigration Limbo
Three months after Syria plunged into a civil war in 2011, Bashar Kassir applied to sponsor his aging parents to Canada for their safety. In August, the Toronto man’s sponsorship application was refused because he failed to respond to the immigration visa post in Jordan demanding further documentation in letters that the family insists they never received. When Kassir asked for copies of those missing letters allegedly sent by traditional mail and electronically, immigration officials instructed him to get them through a formal access to information request. “We would have no issue in providing the additional information in a timely manner if we had received the requests,” said Kassir, 42, who is still waiting for the copies of the lost mail. “All we wanted was doing it the right way, instead of having my parents coming here as refugees.” With hundreds of thousands of immigration applications processed a year and applicants moved and sometimes displaced, experts say lost mail is not uncommon. However, for many immigration applicants, missing mail could have dire consequences and may mean they would never be able to get permanent status and be with their loved ones in Canada — or at least that they could face months of further delays.
CBC – Kenneth Rowe Says Immigration Not the Panacea for Nova Scotia
The head of one of Nova Scotia’s largest and most successful businesses says the province needs to create jobs before it attracts immigrants. “It’s all right bringing immigrants in, but you should get the jobs first. You know, what comes first — the chicken or the egg? In this case we should have jobs for them, otherwise they become a liability,” Kenneth Rowe told a room full of business leaders and politicians at Pier 21 on Tuesday. Rowe, the executive chairman of IMP Group International Inc., was the keynote speaker at a fundraising breakfast at Pier 21. It wasn’t exactly an uplifting speech. […] Lena Diab, the province’s minister of immigration, said everyone agrees growing the economy is critical to Nova Scotia’s future. “We feel enhanced immigration is a crucial component in the future success of Nova Scotia and will help us grow the economy,” she said in a statement. […] Robyn Webb, director of labour market development with the Greater Halifax Partnership, also agrees with Rowe that the province needs jobs for newcomers, but adds there are lots of opportunities in the hidden job market that immigrants might not be aware of.
Queen’s Gazette – English Language Training Expands for International Students
International students who need further English language training can now enroll in a new educational pathway at Queen’s University. Leveraging the strength of the Queen’s School of English, the university is now able to offer student candidates who fall short of the university’s language requirements a new language training program before progressing to their academic program of study. Called QBridge, the program is up to one full year of the English for Academic Purposes Program to help students become academically, linguistically and culturally prepared for their studies and is then followed by their four-year bachelor’s degree. After completing a fall and winter session of the language training course, students begin their academic program. […] Previously, international students who met Queen’s academic requirements but did not quite meet language standards were offered enrolment in an 8-week summer English immersion program to bolster their skills before classes started. This program, now called QBridge Accelerated, will continue to be offered, while the one-year program will be tailored to students who need greater training and preparation.
Toronto Star – Let 10,000 Syrian Refugees Settle in Canada, Humanitarian Groups Say
Humanitarian groups want Immigration Minister Chris Alexander to immediately let 10,000 Syrian refugees settle here and they want an explanation why the Canadian government is dragging its feet when it comes to resettling Syrians. In 2013, Ottawa promised to admit 1,300 Syrian refugees yet the groups say only 200 people have been accepted into Canada, said Faisal Alazem, a Syrian-Canadian with the humanitarian group the Union of Syrian Medical Relief Organizations. The union helps set up field hospitals inside Syria. Every time they ask Ottawa for precise numbers on how many Syrians have been let in, they get the runaround, said Alazem. […] Humanitarian groups, including the Canadian Council for Refugees, Canadians in Support of Refugees in Dire Need, Doctors For Humanity and the Canadian Immigrant Settlement Sector Alliance, have written to Alexander’s office, requesting 10,000 spots be opened up and that a meeting to discuss Canada’s response to the Syrian crisis take place urgently. Canada is still considering the next steps concerning the recent UN request and the Citizenship and Immigration Ministry will not speculate on what Canada’s next step will be.
The Indo-Canadian Voice – Citizenship of 22 People Revoked this Year
Citizenship and Immigration minister Chris Alexander announced last Sunday that since the beginning of 2014 , the government has revoked the citizenship of 22 people who obtained their Canadian citizenship through fraud or misrepresentation. Recent changes to the Citizenship Act include further measures to help combat fraud and protect the citizenship program from abuse. These measures include: increasing penalties for fraud; defining who is an authorized representative and providing authority to develop regulations to designate a regulatory body whose members would be authorized to act as consultants in citizenship matters; and refusing an applicant for fraud at any point in the citizenship process and barring them from reapplying for five years.
