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.
Global News – Canadian Government Accused of Abandoning Families that Sheltered Edward Snowden
Lawyers representing three families who once sheltered U.S. whistleblower Edward Snowden in Hong Kong say they are taking the federal government to court to find out why their clients are not being granted emergency asylum in Canada. The legal saga surrounding the seven people, three of whom are children under six, took another turn on Monday as their legal team claimed federal Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen recently reversed his position relative to the families, deciding against using his ministerial power to expedite their Canadian asylum claims.
Courrier International – Une loi contre les sans-papiers déclenche un exode d’immigrés
Le 23 juin, le gouvernement thaïlandais a pris un décret contre les travailleurs immigrés illégaux, précipitant la fuite de dizaines de milliers de clandestins birmans et cambodgiens. “Des dizaines de milliers de migrants ont fui la Thaïlande” en quelques semaines, alerte le Bangkok Post.
Toronto Star – Thousands of Refugee Cases Suspended Due to Border Agency Delays
Despite law that requires all refugee hearings to be heard within 60 days once a claim is initially deemed eligible by an immigration officer, more and more asylum hearings have been suspended indefinitely because of delays at the Canada Border Services Agency in issuing clearances of what is known as front-end security screening. The proportion of hearing cancellations due to delays in obtaining a security clearance has ballooned from just 6 per cent two years ago to a peak of 55 per cent in December, meaning more than half of cancelled hearings were due to border officials’ inability to meet timelines for assessing if a claimant poses threats to Canada due to criminal or security concerns.
CBC News – Turkish Asylum Claims up 5-fold in Canada amid Erdogan ‘Witch Hunt’
One year after a dramatic military coup unfolded and ultimately failed live on Turkish state television — with defiant soldiers commandeering warplanes and facing off against government supporters on a bridge over the Bosphorous Sea — the government crackdowns that ensued continue to be felt as far away as Canada. The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada says asylum claims from Turkey shot up to more than 1,300 during 2016 — close to five times as many as the year before — with about 398 claims accepted, about four times as many in 2015. This year, the agency says, there have already been 590 claims, 248 of which have been accepted so far.
CBC News – Turkish Refugees in Canada Say Family Members Trapped Stranded Overseas
Hundreds of refugee families across Canada are marking a heart-breaking anniversary Saturday of the coup attempt in Turkey that some say has left their family members trapped there or stranded overseas in precarious circumstances. More than 30 refugee families in Edmonton have been torn apart, with one parent either trapped in Turkey or stranded overseas. Edmonton supporters are appealing to federal Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen to expedite residency applications that would allow refugees here to send for their loved ones.
BBC News – Trump Travel Ban: Judge Expands Definition of ‘Close Relative’
Grandparents and other relatives of people living in the US cannot be barred from entering under President Trump’s travel ban, a judge has ruled. The order, by District Judge Derrick Watson in Hawaii, is a fresh legal blow to Mr Trump’s immigration crackdown. The judge said the ban had interpreted a Supreme Court ruling too narrowly.
