An overview of Canada’s refugee policy

1. An overview of Canada’s refugee policy Canadian Council for Refugees March 2005

2. Refugees are part of Canada • From 1995 to 2004 Canada welcomed more than 2.1 million immigrants. • This included 265,685 (12% of the whole) refugees granted permanent residence. How much do you know about Canada’s record towards refugees? Canadian Council for Refugees

3. Canada’s early record • Refugee protection was not part of Canadian law until 1978. • Early immigration policy discriminated by race: British and northern Europeans were encouraged to immigrate whereas... Canadian Council for Refugees

4. Canada’s early record Chinese immigrants had to pay a Head Tax (increased to $500 in 1903); Asians and others deemed undesirable were excluded by the "continuous passage" policy, and; Immigration Department used its discretion to discourage Black immigrants. Canadian Council for Refugees

5. Komagatu Maru South Asians came to Vancouver on the ship the Komagatu Maru in 1914 to test the "continuous journey” policy. They were refused entry. Vancouver Public Library photo no.6231 Canadian Council for Refugees

6. Discrimination against Jews • In the 1930s and 40s thousands of European Jews tried to flee Nazi Germany. • Motivated by anti-semitism, the Canadian government used its discretion to exclude Jews. Canadian Council for Refugees

7. Discrimination against Jews 1938: Canadian citizens tried, unsuccessfully, to change this policy. They did manage to get the Government to admit some non-Jews, including the Canadian Czech shoe industrialist Thomas Bata (of the Bata Shoe Museum) and 82 of his workers. Canadian Council for Refugees

8. International treaty to recognize refugees • 1951: The Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees defined who was a refugee and their right to legal protection and assistance from those states who signed. Canadian Council for Refugees

9. Definition in 1951 Refugee Convention • a refugee is any person who: " …owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his (sic) nationality and is unable to, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country…" Canadian Council for Refugees

10. 1951 Refugee Convention • '51 Convention was limited to protecting the approximately 50 million European refugees after World War II Canadian Council for Refugees

11. Addition to 1951 Convention • 1967: Additional protocol expanded geographical scope of the Convention as problem of displacement around the world was recognized. • '51 Convention refugee definition still applies today. States interpret it to include – or restrict – certain categories of people. For example, Canada recognizes women and gays fleeing gender persecution as "members of a particular social group." Canadian Council for Refugees

12. Canada and '51 Refugee Convention • Canada didn’t sign '51 Convention (and protocol) until 1969. (The RCMP advised against it based on fears it would restrict Canada’s ability to deport refugees for security reasons.) • Before 1969, refugees were selected overseas and admitted to Canada by group, e.g: 1956 - over 37,000 Hungarians 1968 - nearly 11,000 Czech refugees 1973 - more than 7,000 Asian Ugandans 1975 - nearly 1,200 Chileans Canadian Council for Refugees

13. Cold War " enemies " • Throughout the 1960’s and 70’s, Canada readily granted refuge to people fleeing communist regimes. • There were two designated classes, East European Self-Exiled Persons and Indochinese Designated Class, for such people. Canadian Council for Refugees

14. 1978 New Canadian Immigration Act • 1978 was first time an Immigration Act included a humanitarian category for refugees needing protection and resettlement. • It also established the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program which allowed Canadians to be involved in the resettlement of refugees. Canadian Council for Refugees

15. Canadians sponsor refugees • 1979: Canadians enthusiastically applied to sponsor Boat People under new private sponsorship program. • 1986: UN awarded the Nansen medal to the Canadian people in "recognition of their major and sustained contribution to the cause of refugees". Canadian Council for Refugees

16. Canadian Charter applies to refugee claimants (1) April 4, 1985: Supreme Court rules the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects the basic rights and freedoms of refugee claimants in Canada. Canadian Council for Refugees

17. Canadian Charter applies to refugee claimants (2) • Refugee determination must respect the principles of fundamental justice. • Fundamental justice requires that, where credibility is an issue, refugee claimants must have an oral hearing. Canadian Council for Refugees

18. Singh Decision 1985 • Known as the Singh decision, this Supreme Court decision declared that refugee claimants are entitled to basic standards of rights protection. • 1988 Immigration and Refugee Board to created to hear refugee claims. • April 4, date of Singh decision, is annually commemorated by Canadian refugee supporters as “Refugee Rights Day”. Canadian Council for Refugees

19. Where are refugees today? Statistics from UNHCR 2002 Statistical Yearbook, published July 2004. Canadian Council for Refugees

20. Global cooling toward refugees Today refugees still need protection, but many states in the industrialized world are becoming less welcoming to refugees by: • making it harder for refugees to reach their territory and, • enacting measures that make it less likely that those who arrive get a fair hearing. Canadian Council for Refugees

21. Interdiction of refugees (1) • Officials are stationed at airports to stop anyone, including refugees, without proper documentation from embarking planes for Western countries. • U.S. intercepts and detains Cuban and Haitian asylum-seekers trying to reach it by boat, and mandatorily detains certain categories of asylum-seekers who arrive in the U.S. Canadian Council for Refugees

22. Interdiction of refugees (2) 2001 Australian Government turned back Iraqi and Afghan asylum-seekers trying to reach its shores and later tried to discredit them by accusing them of throwing their children overboard. www.truthoverboard.com Canadian Council for Refugees

23. Canada seen as leader in refugee protection Relative to other countries, Canada has earned a reputation as a leader with some POSITIVE ELEMENTS: a) an independent expert tribunal, with excellent documentation, b) gender guidelines c) until recently, minimal detention of refugee claimants d) an active resettlement program. Canadian Council for Refugees

24. Canada’s leadership is relative However, Canada ’s system has serious shortcomings: • Stopping refugee claimants from reaching Canada. • Refusing to provide appeal. • Delays in processing applications of sponsored refugees. • Slow processing of refugees’ spouses and childen to join them in Canada. • Not challenging anti-refugee discourse. Canadian Council for Refugees

25. Issues for Canada:Safe Third Country Agreement (1) December 2004 Canadian Government designated the US a “safe third country”, closing the land border to most refugee claimants. Only a few exceptions apply (e.g. if one has family with status in Canada) Canadian Council for Refugees

26. Issues for Canada:Safe Third Country Agreement (2) • But the U.S. is not safe for refugees because: • 1000’s of refugee claimants, including children, are detained in the U.S., some for years. • U.S. fails to protect refugees due to narrow interpretation of refugee Convention and rules such as one-year bar to claiming. Canadian Council for Refugees

27. Issues for Canada:Safe Third Country Agreement (3) • U.S. discriminates by detaining Haitians based on nationality; people from Muslim countries are at high risk of detention. • 2002 U.S. deportation of Canadian citizen Maher Arar to Syria demonstrates their low regard for human rights of some non-U.S. citizens. Canadian Council for Refugees

28. Issues for Canada: Canada refuses to implement appeal Many refugees are recognized in Canada, but some are mistakenly denied: • No appeal on merits. • The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has urged Canada to provide appeal. • 2002 Canadian Parliament adopted law that created Refugee Appeal Division but Government has refused to implement it. Canadian Council for Refugees

29. Issues for Canada: Sponsored refugees wait for years As of 2005, more than 12,000 refugees overseas are waiting for a decision: • Refugees sponsored in 2005 may not even be interviewed until 2008. • Private sponsors in Canada lose hope. Canadian Council for Refugees

30. Issues for Canada: Families wait to be reunited Some refugees in Canada wait years for their spouses/children to be allowed to join them: • Barriers in processing (e.g. DNA testing) and scarce resources in Canadian visa posts cause delays. • Lives of family members overseas can be at risk. Canadian Council for Refugees

31. Issues for Canada:Anti-refugee discourse Some Canadian media and experts carry simplistic messages that dangerously present one group of refugees as more deserving than another: • Refugees in camps are presented as "good" refugees who wait patiently overseas. • Refugees who come to Canada to claim refugee status are presented as "bad", accused of jumping an imaginary queue. Canadian Council for Refugees

32. What is wrong with this message? • It allows governments to manipulate public opinon by scapegoating refugee claimants (e.g. in 2001 the Australian Government used anti-refugee rhetoric to win the election). • It violates international law which obliges states (including Canada) to respect the right to flee persecution to seek refuge. • It creates hate and fear toward a vulnerable group of people. Canadian Council for Refugees

33. Future challenges What do YOU think they are? Canadian Council for Refugees