Canada immigration rules separate Thai mother and son
November 30 2009 by Liam Clifford
Mother who hid pregnancy from Canada immigration may be forced to leave country.
A
mother from Thailand who has emigrated to Canada and has made her home in
Ottawa is now fighting Canada immigration officials to allow her son
to live in Canada.
Panita Chumchantha fell pregnant when she and her mother were trying to
gain Canadian visas to join her adopted sister who was living in Canada.
Chumchantha decided to keep the child a secret from Canada
immigration, who eventually granted her permanent residency.
At this point she has to decide whether to leave her son in Thailand or
take the chance for her and her mother to live in Canada.
She decided to leave her son with his paternal grandparents and work on
trying to obtain a visa for her son as soon as possible. However, this
has not been easy as Canadian immigration says he does not qualify as a
family member.
Chumchantha has a birth certificate and photos of her before and after
the birth but her case has still not been accepted by officials.
Liberal MP Mauril Belanger says that policies need to be more flexible
in such situations, with the scope for ministerial discretion in cases
with unique Canadian immigration circumstances.
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