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 – Kept Apart for Years, Iranian Couples Decry Canada’s Heartbreaking Immigration Delays
One spouse in Canada, the other overseas — for years. For a group of Iranian nationals, the wait to live with — let alone hug and kiss — their partners has been painfully long as they wait years for Canada to process their permanent residency (PR) applications. They say Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has failed them with “unreasonably long” delays and in some cases by denying their visitor visas, keeping them physically apart for years.
Radio-Canada – Les étudiants chinois des universités canadiennes ne pourront plus rester chez eux
Depuis le début de la pandémie de COVID-19, de nombreux étudiants d’origine chinoise ont choisi de suivre des cours d’universités canadiennes en mode virtuel, tout en demeurant en Chine. Cela s’apprête toutefois à changer à la prochaine session de printemps, alors que le ministère de l’Éducation chinois a annoncé qu’il ne reconnaîtra pas les crédits des étudiants qui ne retourneront pas sur les campus de leurs universités étrangères. Une mesure semblable était entrée en vigueur pour la session d’hiver, amorcée en janvier.
Global News – Liberals Working to Soften Approach to Temporary Visas, Trudeau Says
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he’s pushing Canada’s immigration system to soften its approach to processing visa applications and put less focus on the risk of visitors overstaying their short-term visas. “The system — I’ll be honest — is still based around, ‘Prove to me that you won’t stay if you come,’ right?” he said, arguing that it is easier for applicants to “convince” immigration officials to grant them visas if they have “a good job and a home and a house and a good status back home.”
La Presse – Justin Trudeau veut faciliter l’obtention d’un visa temporaire
Le premier ministre Justin Trudeau souhaite que l’obtention d’un visa temporaire soit plus facile pour les demandeurs. Il veut que le système migratoire se préoccupe moins des risques qu’un visiteur reste au pays passé la date d’expiration de ce document. « Soyons honnêtes, le système est encore fondé sur la capacité du demandeur à prouver qu’il ne restera pas au pays s’il vient ici. Il leur est plus facile de convaincre les autorités d’obtenir un visa s’il a un bon emploi, une maison et un bon statut chez lui », a-t-il dit. https://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/2023-02-11/justin-trudeau-veut-faciliter-l-obtention-d-un-visa-temporaire.php
CBC News – U.S. Border Agents Give Rides to Quebec-Bound Migrants as Side Hustle, Sources Tell Radio-Canada
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is investigating reports that some of its border patrol agents are driving Quebec-bound asylum seekers to the irregular border crossing on Roxham Road in exchange for money, picking up groups of people in nearby Plattsburgh, N.Y., while off duty. Sources have told Radio-Canada the practice “has been known for a few months,” adding that several agents are involved, but the exact number is unknown.
Toronto Star – Inquest Jury into Refugee’s Death Calls for End to Holding Immigration Detainees in Jails
What caused Abdurahman Ibrahim Hassan’s death will remain a subject of debate. But inquest jurors said Friday they hope his story can lead to something: an end to the practice of housing immigration detainees in Ontario jails. After a day and a half of deliberation, the five jurors reviewing the death of Hassan, a refugee with a lengthy history of mental illness, delivered their verdict, making 53 recommendations — directed at federal and provincial authorities, police and correctional services, and Peterborough Regional Health Centre — to avoid similar deaths in the future.
