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 News – Newcomers Say They’re Left in Limbo by ‘Unfair’ Changes to Manitoba Health Card Requirements
Before the change, applicants only needed proof of their citizenship or permanent residency in Canada. Now, Manitoba’s health department requires proof they live in the province, such as a lease agreement, a document confirming employment or a notarized letter from a landlord. It’s a requirement newcomer co-ordinator Boris Ntambwe said is difficult for new Canadians to fulfil. Ntambwe said because many immigrants and refugees stay in transitional housing when they first arrive, they don’t have the kind of paperwork the province is asking for.
Un soir de la mi-novembre, Axel Mbongo marchait sur la rue Saint-Joseph en direction du Café Van Houtte quand une voiture de la police de Québec a tourné le coin de la rue de la Cité et s’est arrêtée près de lui. La policière, accompagnée d’un collègue, a ouvert la fenêtre et lui a ordonné de marcher sur le trottoir. « Comme d’habitude, on m’a demandé mes papiers d’identité», se souvient M. Mbongo, 28 ans, un ancien athlète de l’équipe d’athlétisme du Rouge et Or qui possède une entreprise d’entretien ménager. Puis, les patrouilleurs l’ont laissé partir.
Halifax Today – Peace by Chocolate’s Tareq Hadhad to Become Canadian Citizen Next Month
Nova Scotia’s best-known chocolatier will soon become a Canadian citizen. Tareq Hadhad took to social media earlier this week to share the news that he just aced his citizenship test. Hadhad’s father owned a chocolate factory in Damascus. Hadhad arrived in Canada in late 2015, and was followed by his siblings and parents a month later. Sponsored by a group in Antigonish, they settled in the community and soon restarted the family business, launching Peace by Chocolate in 2016.
CBC News – Supreme Court to Decide Whether to Hear Appeal from Former Nazi Interpreter
Canada’s top court will decide Thursday whether to hear an appeal from a 95-year-old ex-Nazi interpreter fighting to retain his Canadian citizenship — a decision that ultimately could lead to Helmut Oberlander’s deportation. The Waterloo, Ont., man has been engaged in a legal battle with the the federal government since 1995, when the RCMP launched an investigation into his alleged involvement in war crimes. That triggered the process to strip him of his Canadian citizenship, which he has challenged through the courts.
CBC News – ‘Why Is This Happening to Me?’ Immigration Issues Keep B.C. Man and Wife Apart for 20 Years of Marriage
Paramjit Basanti, a Canadian living in Surrey, B.C., wed Charanjit Kular — an Indian citizen who is now 52 — in an arranged marriage in February 1999. Since then, he has tried to sponsor her five times. All five times, she was rejected. His lawyer, Narindar Kang, said it’s a symptom of the Canadian immigration system’s misplaced focus on preventing “bad faith” marriages. Those are marriages where a couple marries solely to get one partner Canadian citizenship with no intention of staying together.
National Post – Saskatchewan Government Seeks More Immigration Powers for Province, like Those in Quebec
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says he wants more provincial say over immigration. Moe says he wants additional control over selecting classes and skills to help achieve his goal of growing Saskatchewan’s population by 300,000 residents to 1.4 million over the next decade and creating 100,000 new jobs. The economic and family classes are the immigration areas Moe says he’s most interested in. He says he wants the province to have the ability to change the proportion of immigrants coming in under those categories as needed.
