No more dual citizenship
Re: A puzzling Liberal double standard, Graeme Gordon, July 17
Bona fide citizenship implies an obligation by government to treat all citizens equally before the law and to deal with all matters of misbehaviour internally without sending those problems abroad to be dealt with by foreign governments, which would be a demonstration that a government is not sovereign. In return, true citizenship imposes an obligation of unreserved loyalty by each citizen to the country of which he is a citizen. Stephen Harper’s bill permitting the government to rescind the citizenship of certain dual citizens was a blunt admission that the Canadian government does not consider itself sovereign in respect of all dual citizens and that dual citizens have rights that other Canadians do not. The solution is to make it impossible for Canadians to hold dual citizenship.
Dual citizenship compromises not only the sovereignty of a country over its citizens, but the loyalty of individuals to their fellow citizens.
For example, had Tom Mulcair, instead of Justin Trudeau, become prime minister in October 2015, Canada would have had its first French prime minister. In the event that Canada and France declared war with one another, or if the two countries negotiated a trade treaty, where would Mr. Mulcair’s loyalties lie? Would he remain an alien enemy? Could he be conscripted into the French armed forces? Of course, this is an extreme hypothetical example, but the same sorts of conflicts arise for dual citizens in all walks of life.
So, Canada should eliminate dual citizenship by requiring anyone holding dual citizenship to renounce one or the other and by stripping Canadian citizenship from those who fail to do this. At the same time, Canada should introduce a modified process for restoring citizenship to former citizens who gave up their Canadian citizenship in order to live abroad or in order to accept government postings in foreign countries. Until these things are done, the inconsistencies pointed out by Mr. Gordon will persist, no matter which party is in power in Ottawa.
Patrick Cowan, North York, Ont.