Canadian immigration rejects refugees from five countries
July 31 2009 by Matt Jones
Iraq refugees to be refused Canada visa
Refugees from five of the world’s most troubled countries including Afghanistan and Iraq are to be refused a Canada visa if they have already entered the US.
In a recent announcement Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenny has said that refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zimbabwe, Haiti, Afghanistan and Iraq will be refused entry to the country if they are moving from the US.
The Conservative government said that refugees should seek protection in the country they arrive in first. Approximately 5,000 people will be affected by this every year according to government estimates.
This follows the rejection of Mexican and Czech refugee claimants, which caused outrage and sparked a mini 'visa war' between the countries. But the reasons for this latest change are not due to “bogus” applications.
It is unclear what the reaction from the five affected countries will be.
In a related announcement, the deportation ban for refugees from Burundi, Liberia and Rwanda is to be lifted. This change is effective immediately.
Since 1994 a ban has been in place on deporting refugees from Burundi and Rwanda, but the war in Rwanda has ended and a UN peace keeping force in Burundi is said to have created an "atmosphere of security.” An internal review reported there to be “improved conditions” in all three countries.
Amnesty International has produced a long list of abuses that are still going on in Burundi and Liberia. Up to 2,100 refugees that already made the move to Canada could be affected by this sudden change.
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