Canadian Immigration Information Centre

Poll shows Canadians believe immigrants are a burden on social programs

According to a poll completed this week, more than 50% of Canadians believe that immigrants represent a burden on Canada's social programs. About 66% want the government to give priority to educated or highly skilled foreign nationals seeking to immigrate to Canada. Survey results were closely tied to education levels - respondents with the highest level of education were less likely to believe that immigrants were a burden on the country's social system. 17,601 people were interviewed for the survey in 23 countries. Almost 40% of Canadian respondents said they believed immigration has had a positive impact on the country. Another 35% said they believed immigration has had a negative impact.

Amnesty International asks Canada to protect privacy of fugitives on War Crimes Wanted List

Amnesty International has sent an open letter to the government of Canada in which it is asking the government to ensure that safeguards are in place to protect the privacy of foreign nationals who are the subject of a Canada-wide arrest warrants for violations under international law or the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act. The Canada Border Services Agency created a War Crimes Wanted List on its website with the list of 30 foreign nationals in Canada who are wanted for removal. Amnesty International expressed concern that the photos and names of the fugitives were made available on the website because of the potential reputational harm to those persons.  

The War Crimes Wanted List has been successful in locating seven of the fugitives. Two of the fugitives were deported from Canada. One was determined to be the United States. 

Amnesty International suggests that Canada prosecute those on the list rather than returning them to their country of origin. In the open letter, Amnesty International says that under international law, Canada is prohibited from deporting a foreign national if the person faces a serious risk of human rights violations such as torture, execution or enforced disappearance.

That is not the case, however. Under the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Canada agreed not to expel a foreign national if there are substantial grounds to believe the foreign national would be subject to torture in the receiving country. This is not absolute and pursuant to the Convention, the prohibition against removal is subject to reasonable limits that can be demonstrably justified under Canadian law.  What this means is that if a foreign national’s presence in Canada would pose a threat to Canada or Canadians, or would otherwise undermine the integrity of the immigration system, the foreign national may be deported regardless of the Convention.  Circumstances where a foreign national’s presence may pose a threat to Canada or Canadians include serious criminality, terrorist threat or other serious security risk (such as war crimes). 

Moreover, under the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, foreign nationals who are refugees in Canada should not be expelled to countries where their life or freedom would be threatened because of their race, religion, nationality, political views or membership in a social group. The right against expulsion is also not absolute in Canada. Under this Convention, certain activities or conduct disqualify a person as a Convention refugee, including if the foreign national committed a crime against peace, a war crime, a crime against humanity, a serious non-political crime outside the country of refuge before being admitted as a refugee, or an act against the principles of the United Nations.

Canada seeks alleged war criminals in Canada

The Canada Border Services Agency has published a list of 30 foreign nationals whom it says are in Canada and have violated human or international rights under the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act or under international law. The alleged war crimes violations would render them inadmissible to Canada.

The Canada Border Services Agency website indicates that the foreign nationals are from Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, El Salvador, Ghana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan and the former Yugoslavia. Most are believed to have settled in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta.

Canada proposes new body to regulate immigration consultants

The federal government of Canada has proposed the establishment of a new regulatory body to oversee immigration consultants to be called the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council. The new Council will replace the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants. This latter group was criticized for failing to regulate the conduct of its members. 

U.S. seeking extradition of 3 Canadians wanted for money laundering and illegal gambling with ties to PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker

The U.S. government is seeking the arrest and will seek the eventual extradition of three Canadians indicted in New York today for money laundering, bank fraud and illegal gambling. The three Canadians being sought are:

• Isai Scheinberg, currently living in the Isle of Man;
• Nelson Burtnick, currently living in Ireland; and
• Ryan Lang, currently living in Canada.

Eight other individuals, mostly residents of the U.S., were also indicted. The defendants include the founders of three of the largest Internet gambling sites – PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker. 

According to the indictment, the defendants fraudulently circumvented anti-money laundering laws and the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act through various means, including by lying about their business operations and investing in small banks to control the decisions made with respect to online gambling clients. 

The U.S. has also filed a concurrent civil complaint seeking to recover from the Canadians and other defendants, US$3 billion that is alleged to be proceeds of crime. Prior to the unsealing of the indictment, the defendants' bank accounts were frozen in 14 countries, including Canada. If the Canadian defendants are arrested and extradited to the U.S., they each face at least 20 years in prison if convicted of the money laundering offences. 

MV Sun Sea refugees allude to being trafficked to Canada and owe debts to the traffickers

According to this report in the Globe and Mail, several of the migrants on the MV Sun Sea appear to have admitted that they were trafficked, and not smuggled to Canada and owe debts to the traffickers that they have no intention of repaying. Minister Kenney, the federal immigration minister for Canada, has said that according to evidence he received from the Australian government, Sri Lankan foreign nationals who are trafficked into places like Australia or Canada are "often pressed into criminal service in areas like credit card fraud." Payments to human smugglers or human traffickers are illegal. A person is trafficked, and not smuggled, if they continue to be indebted to the group who smuggled them. Persons who are trafficked are typically coerced, threatened or forced to provide free labour or services or forced to pay substantial sums to the traffickers for long periods of time. If the payments are made to human trafficking operators in Sri Lanka who are members of the LTTE, or in furtherance of the activities of the LTTE, the payments can be considered terrorist activity financing. Terrorist financing activity is prohibited in Canada. 

Immigration and Refugee Board orders Tamil migrant deported from Canada

The Immigration and Refugee Board has ordered a migrant who entered Canada illegally aboard the MV Sun Sea deported. The man, whose identity cannot be revealed under Canada's privacy laws, admitted he was a member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a terrorist group in Canada, from 1991 to 1996. A foreign national with terrorist ties is generally inadmissible to Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, for security grounds if they engaged in an act of subversion against a government; or engaged in terrorism; or is or was a member of a terrorist organization. The foreign national with ties to the LTTE can also be inadmissible to Canada under serious criminality grounds for committing an act outside of Canada that is an offence in Sri Lanka and if committed in Canada, would be an offence punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of at least ten years (e.g. money laundering or terrorist activity offences in the Criminal Code of Canada). 

Report suggests human trafficking in Tamil migration to Canada

According to a report by the Canada Services Border Agency that was posted on the National Post website, the majority of the Tamil migrants who came to Canada aboard the MV Sun Sea in August 2010 may have been part of a human trafficking operation. The report entitled "Preliminary Analysis of MV Sun Sea MIgrants' Interview Notes" states that the majority of the migrants were charged a smuggling fee of $20,000 to $30,000 for their voyage on the MV Sun Sea and paid approximately 25% of that amount as a deposit to agents before departing. The remaining 75% of the fee must be paid to the agents from Canada. 

When migrants, or their families, continue to be financially indebted to a person or a group who facilitated, financed or effected their illegal arrival in a country, that is evidence of human trafficking.

A smuggling operation can become a trafficking operation. Migrants may agree to be smuggled on a migrant ship and once on board, become victims of trafficking. This can happen if the smugglers force migrants to provide services (often sexual), labour, or payments of some kind on the vessel or after arrival in Canada, under circumstances where the migrants fear for their safety or that of someone known to them if they refuse to provide that service, labour or payment. 

People that are smuggled are not deprived of liberty when they arrive at their destination, whereas those who are trafficked are deprived of their liberty in one of several ways - they are typically coerced, threatened or physically abused and are usually forced to provide free labour or services, forced into the sex trade, or forced to pay substantial sums to the traffickers for long periods of time.

Tamil migrants cost Canadians $25 million to process

According to this story on CBC News, the arrival of the approximately 490 Tamil migrants from Thailand to Canada in August of last year aboard the MV Sun Sea, cost Canadian taxpayers $25 million. The lion's share of the cost was paid by the Canada Border Services Agency at $22 million, followed by the RCMP at $2.1 million and the Canada Services Border Agency at $908,000. 

Refugee from Sudan with extensive record for aggravated sexual assault ordered held in custody

Clato Mabior, a foreign national from Sudan in his mid-30s, who claimed refugee protection in Canada in 2000, will remain in custody for now. The Federal Court of Canada granted an interim stay of a decision by the Immigration and Refugee Board to release Mabior. Although a Convention refugee, Mabior will likely be removed from Canada because of his extensive criminal record in this country. Mabior was convicted of six counts of aggravated sexual assault, and one count of sexual interference and sexual touching. One of the convictions involved the sexual assault on a young girl who was 12-years-old. 

 "I am pleased the Court has prevented Mr. Mabior''s release until the stay application can be heard. There are very important issues at stake for the safety and security of Canadians and I look forward to counsel presenting our position on those issues to the Court in the coming days." said Minister Vic Toews. "Our government remains unwavering in its commitment to protect the safety and security of Canadian families. We do not tolerate those who come to this country and commit serious crimes."