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.
Ottawa Citizen – ‘Too many accidents’: Russian Scientist Says She Faces Grave Danger if Canada Denies Refugee Bid
Scientist Elena Musikhina, a Russian scientist and vocal critic of the Putin government, and her husband, Mikhail Musikhin, who have lived in Gatineau since December 2015, say they face grave danger if they return to Russia. Their application for refugee protection was turned down in June 2016, with a tribunal concluding that they didn’t qualify as refugees. An appeal of that decision also failed. Now, they say their only hope is to win their case in Federal Court, although no date has been set for a hearing.
CBC News – Transit Tops Report’s List of Needs for Immigrant Youth to Better Settle in Metro Vancouver
A report released on Monday highlights the experiences of about 156 self-identified immigrant and refugee youth aged 13 to 30 in the area. They were surveyed about challenges they face finding employment or settling in Canada by the Vancouver Foundation and the Fresh Voices Youth Advisory Team. “Transit is a rising problem,” said Yansie Ardon, a facilitator with Fresh Voices, which helped conduct the research. The report suggested TransLink or the government provide a subsidized bus pass for recent immigrants or young refugees.
Globe and Mail – Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen to Visit Nigeria to Try to Contain Flow of Asylum Claimants
The trip comes as the federal government faces pressure to show it is controlling the influx of people entering the country to ask for protection. The RCMP intercepted more than 5,000 claimants at the irregular border crossings in the first three months of the year and another 2,500 in April alone. Mr. Hussen will travel to Nigeria to speak to both American and senior Nigerian authorities; Canadian immigration officials are already working with U.S. visa officers in the West African country.
Toronto Star – Federal Immigration Minister Warns Seeking Asylum in Canada Is ‘No Free Ticket’
After Haitians in 2017, it appears Nigerians armed with valid U.S. visitor visas are the latest group to come across at Roxham Road in Hemmingford, not far from the Lacolle border crossing at the Quebec-New York border. Federal Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen will head to Nigeria in the coming weeks amid an influx of nationals from that country seeking asylum in Canada in recent months. Three senior federal ministers delivered a blunt reminder to them Monday that entering Canada illegally is not a free pass into the country.
Toronto Star – Refugees’ Rights Not Breached Despite 4-Year Wait for Asylum Decision, Court Rules
A refugee judge waited almost four years before rejecting the asylum claim of a Mexican family on the last day of his job, but the Federal Court has ruled the delay was not “severe” enough to breach the claimants’ charter rights. The 26 members of the extended Mexican family had their last hearing on Dec. 6, 2011. Immigration and Refugee Board member David McBean didn’t deliver his decision on the family, who had settled in Toronto, until Oct. 14, 2015, the same day his government appointment expired.
CBC News – Hussen Says He’s Open to Changing Border Pact with U.S. — But Won’t Say How
Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it’s reviewing a Canadian proposal to amend the Safe Third Country Agreement, a pact that requires individuals claiming asylum to do so in the first safe country they land in, with few exceptions. While Hussen has repeatedly insisted that there are no “formal negotiations” going on at this point, he told CBC that the Safe Third Country Agreement is the subject of ongoing conversations with the U.S. which could lead to proposals to modernize the 14-year-old pact.
