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.
Citoyenneté et Immigration Canada – Communiqué – Le Canada accueille un nombre record de visiteurs depuis les Philippines en 2013
Le ministre de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration du Canada, Chris Alexander, a annoncé aujourd’hui que le Canada a délivré plus de 47 000 visas de visiteur à des visiteurs philippins en 2013. Il s’agit là d’un sommet en ce qui concerne les Philippines, et d’une hausse de 57 pour 100 depuis 2006. En 2013, près de 30 000 citoyens philippins sont devenus résidents permanents du Canada, ce qui place les Philippines au troisième rang parmi les principaux pays d’où le Canada tire son immigration. Les améliorations que le gouvernement a apportées au système d’immigration du Canada facilitent le tourisme et l’immigration légitimes au Canada des personnes originaires des Philippines, ce qui renforce la prospérité et la croissance économiques dans tout le pays.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada News Release – Welcoming Record Numbers from China in 2013
Today, Chris Alexander, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister and Costas Menegakis, Parliamentary Secretary to Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister, highlighted the record number of Chinese students and permanent residents welcomed to Canada in 2013. They announced that last year, Canada issued more than 270,000 visitor visas to Chinese citizens, welcomed more than 29,000 Chinese students and admitted more than 34,000 Chinese citizens as permanent residents of Canada. This further emphasizes the deep connection that Canada and China share. This comes on the heels of a successful trip that Alexander made to China—where he emphasized the many opportunities and pathways to Canada that exist for Chinese skilled workers, travellers, business people and students.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada News Release – Welcoming a Record Number of Visitors From the Philippines in 2013
Today, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander announced that Canada issued more than 47,000 visitor visas to Filipino visitors in 2013. This figure represents a record high for the Philippines and a 57 percent increase since 2006. In 2013, nearly 30,000 Filipino citizens became permanent residents of Canada ranking the Philippines as third in the top source countries for immigration to Canada. The government’s improvements to Canada’s immigration system are helping to facilitate legitimate tourism as well as immigration of those from the Philippines to Canada, strengthening economic prosperity and growth across our country. Visitors to Canada benefit from the Multiple Entry Visa (MEV), which allows qualified visitors to come and go from Canada for six months at a time for up to 10 years. MEVs are a fast, flexible and convenient option for frequent visitors to Canada.
Toronto Star – Comic Blogger Draws on Immigrant Experience in Toronto
When Hanako Takiyoshi moved to Toronto, she marvelled at the Eaton Centre, taking photos “just like other excited Japanese tourists,” she admits. […] Toronto’s diversity surprised her, too. Aomori, her hometown in Japan, is much more homogenous. That was about 10 years ago. As Takiyoshi, who’s in her early 30s, settled in Toronto, she wanted to document her experiences. Her Canadian husband, Kevin James, gave her cartooning pens and paper for Christmas one year, and she decided to revisit an old pastime — drawing. Last December, Takiyoshi created a blog called The Days of Hanako, which provides readers with anecdotes about her immigration experience in comic-strip form.
CBC – Replace Temporary Foreign Worker Program With Immigration, Say Experts
“One thing the minister has made clear recently is that if we catch employers lying on their application forms for temporary foreign workers, we will not hesitate to refer the matter to law enforcement agencies for criminal investigation,” Kenney spokeswoman Alexandra Fortier said in an email on Tuesday. […] But some say the entire program should simply be scrapped in favour of other, simpler ways to tackle supposed labour shortages in provinces and regions that are booming. Allowing more low-skilled immigrants into Canada and requiring them to settle in regions of the country with labour shortages is one option, says Jeffrey Reitz, an immigration expert at the University of Toronto. “That would certainly be a possibility since we haven’t been bringing people in on a permanent basis at low-skill levels,” Reitz said. “It may be that our economy hinges on having more unskilled workers coming in as permanent immigrants.”
Toronto Star – Congolese Refugees “Interviewed” in Canada by Officials They Fled From
The federal government allegedly paid for a cross-Canada trip by officials from Congo — a country known for its human rights abuses — to “interview” Congolese nationals facing deportation to their homeland. The allegations, made by some of the refugee claimants who were interviewed, have prompted outrage in the Congolese Canadian community, whose members expressed shock that the government would work with a regime it has placed under a travel warning. […] Although the Democratic Republic of Congo is among a handful of countries under a moratorium on removals, CBSA’s Graham said the ban does not apply to individuals deemed inadmissible to Canada for reasons of criminality, security, organized crime or human rights violations.
