Immigration News

 

In the first two years of the Felipe Calderon administration, Mexico has become a focal point in the violation of the human rights of immigrants even as it criticizes the treatment of Mexican migrants in the United States. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants Jorge Bustamante states the problem in no uncertain terms: "We are responsible for violations of the rights of Central Americans passing through Mexico, the same or worse as those of Mexicans in the United States."

http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5713

Two hours were enough for José Luis Sánchez and his family to pack their most valuable belongings in two vans – items accumulated in 10 years of living in the Dallas area.

With his wife, children and their suitcases in place, Mr. Sánchez closed the door of his Mesquite apartment for the last time, sat at the wheel of one of the vehicles – his brother drove the other – and hit the road back to his homeland.

So ended his decade-long adventure as an illegal Mexican immigrant in the United States.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/070508dnmetimmigrants.24395628.html

I am the same person who contributed and commented to ViveleCanada under another name.  Glad to be back in Canada, with another e-mail address, I needed to change "personality".  This is what occurred when I posted something about my situation on Wikipedia - they edited it out the very next day!

 

CROSS-COUNTRY MOBILIZING AGAINST BILL C-50...

YOUR URGENT SUPPORT NEEDED- CALL, FAX, OR EMAIL LIBERAL AND NDP MPS TO SCRAP BILL C-50!

*** WED APRIL 9 - FRI APRIL 11, 2008: Flood the offices of Liberal and NDP Members of Parliament with calls, emails and faxes to pressure them to vote AGAINST Bill C-50.

Today in Canada, there is a dearth of movers and shakers …(leaders), with the result that this country is now beginning to reap what was sown by decades of governments and politicians who lacked the ability to look much beyond their noses …resulting in poorly considered  decisions, primarily motivated by political expediencies while denying common sense and implications for the future.

Mar 19, 2008 14:48 ET
Canada to Double Number of Iraqi Refugees

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - March 19, 2008) - The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, today announced that Canada will more than double the number of Convention refugees it receives this year from Iraq.

Canada will welcome between 1,800 and 2,000 Iraqi refugees in 2008, up from approximately 900 in 2007. The majority will be resettled from Syria and Jordan.

"This year, we are responding to the situation in Iraq by significantly increasing the number of Iraqi refugees we accept," said Minister Finley. "Consistent with Canada's longstanding tradition of providing protection to refugees most in need, we will continue to monitor this situation and explore options to further meet resettlement needs with respect to Iraqis."

Including the Iraqi refugees, Canada is increasing the Middle East resettlement target to 3,300 people this year, which is a 54 percent increase over 2007. This means that Citizenship and Immigration Canada will be allocating almost one third of its global resettlement places to Iraqi and other refugees displaced in the region by war.

The government is set to announce Friday that a near-record number foreigners was allowed into Canada last year - 429,000 - a total higher than in any year since 1911.

Correct me if I'm wrong, these are the Vietnamese "Boat People" aren't they?

Government of Canada welcomes Vietnamese people living without status in the Philippines

Ottawa, March 7, 2008 — The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, announced today the arrival of the first of a number of Vietnamese who have been living in the Philippines without status since the 1970s.

Four people were among the first to arrive today in Vancouver. More will arrive in the coming days and weeks as the government follows up on a commitment made last May to review their applications based on humanitarian and compassionate considerations.
Mr. Ed Komarnicki, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration greeted the arrivals in Vancouver on behalf of Minister Finley. “We are pleased to welcome these individuals as they have been living in an uncertain situation for many years,” said Parliamentary Secretary Komarnicki.

“Our government supports the Vietnamese community in Canada,” said Minister Finley. “Canada will continue to make every effort to facilitate their immigration and we look forward to welcoming more people in the weeks to come.”

Ontario Targets Best and Brightest McGuinty Government Expands Program to Attract International Students WATERLOO, ON, Feb. 12 /CNW/ - Attracting international students to Ontario and keeping them here in high-value jobs is a benefit to the provincial economy. Now more international students than ever will have a chance to become permanent Ontario residents as a result of changes to the province's Pilot Provincial Nominee Program. Previously, only graduates of Ontario post-secondary institutions could be considered. Now the program is open to international students Canada-wide. The students need to be graduates of a publicly funded Canadian college or university and have a job offer in Ontario.

February 8, 2008 MANITOBA SIGNS IMMIGRATION AGREEMENT WITH THE PHILIPPINES Manila, Philippines—Premier Gary Doer today signed an agreement with the Philippines government to work together on ways to streamline the immigration process including better connection of Filipino applicants with potential employers in Manitoba. The memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed by Doer and Secretary Arturo Brion of the Department of Labour and Employment in the Philippines. “This agreement builds on the close relationship that already exists between Manitoba and the Philippines,” Doer said. “By working together, we can ensure the ethical movement of people, improve the application process, strengthen worker protection and better meet the needs of employers.”

Immigration wait times in Canada growing, stats reveal 1 hour, 44 minutes ago By Alexander Panetta, The Canadian Press OTTAWA - Immigration wait times have surged more than 20 per cent since 2004, according to statistics released by the political opposition in Ottawa. The figures also reveal great disparities in the way Canada processes applications from one country to the next. Some groups of immigrants are forced to wait a staggering 2,300 per cent longer than others depending on where they're from and what immigration category they fall under.

Government of Canada joins partners in launching Tool Box to help attract immigrants to smaller communities Lethbridge, February 1, 2008 — Parliamentary Secretary Ed Komarnicki, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, joined provincial, municipal and community partners to launch the “Tool Box of Ideas for Smaller Centres,” a resource aimed at attracting immigrants to smaller communities, and supporting their settlement and integration across Canada. “The Government of Canada believes in the importance of immigration, and we are a proud partner in this initiative,” said Mr. Komarnicki. “We want to help smaller communities across the country to benefit from immigration and this tool box will help them develop their own immigration strategies.”

Canada facilitates citizenship for children adopted abroad OTTAWA, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- A law making it easier for children adopted abroad to become Canadian citizens went into effect Sunday, according to a statement on Citizenship and Immigration Canada's website. Parents previously had to apply to sponsor such adopted child to come to Canada, then seek permanent resident status for him or her, before finally applying for citizenship, a process that could take 18 months. Now, based on an amendment to Canada's citizenship laws passed earlier this year, parents could directly seek Canadian citizenship for their adopted children from outside the country, and such a child can even obtain a Canadian passport before entering the country.

QUEBEC REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION HEARINGS I am a Black-American-Anglophone-Christian-Woman who resides in Quebec. I know that my views on the reasonable accommodation hearings will not be counted in the final analysis. However, because I love Montreal, I cannot keep silent on this very important issue. I was not at all surprised that many people in Quebec want immigrants to give up their cultural and religious identities as a condition to becoming a Quebec citizen. Why does the majority population of Quebec feel that it is necessary to mold and shape immigrants into their own image? I have some experience in this area because I grew up in a small American southern town where the White majority felt the exact same way. Black people were seen as a threat. Many unjust laws were passed to keep us in our place and from corrupting White people’s way of life. Black people did all that could be done to fit in. Many became Christians and adopted the southern culture. We talked with a southern accent and did our best to look just like them. After all of our assimilation, we realized that we had lost our identity. The road back to our roots has been a long and painful journey.

The lawyer for the family of a man who died after being Tasered at Vancouver International Airport says tests show he had no drugs or alcohol in his system. Meanwhile, CTV British Columbia has obtained an airport log that shows a four-minute lag between when Dziekanski lost consciousness and when B.C. ambulance crew members were called, and an almost 15-minute gap between the time he passed out after being tasered, and when the ambulance crew arrived on the scene. Here is the timeline of events of Oct. 14: