A look at the daunting reality of Canada’s migrant issue
MORE THAN 20,000 ILLEGAL BORDER CROSSINGS HAVE BEEN MADE INTO CANADA SINCE EARLY 2017, ALL OF THEM BY FOREIGN NATIONALS SEEKING ASYLUM. WITH THE INFLUX EXPECTED TO GROW EVEN BIGGER THIS SUMMER, TRISTIN HOPPER DETAILS THE CHALLENGE OF CANADA’S ONGOING MIGR
OUTPACING CONVENTIONAL REFUGEES
In the first three months of 2018, 5,052 asylum seekers were intercepted by the RCMP after illegally crossing the Canadian border, compared to 4,475 people who filed refugee claims through conventional channels such as airports and official border stations. In other words, for the first time there are more people illegally seeking asylum in Canada than making legal refugee claims — and that trend is set to continue throughout 2018. In 2017, the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) received at least 18,149 claims from “irregular border crossers” — those who claimed asylum after first entering Canada illegally. This was compared to 29,276 people who applied for refugee status legally. The RCMP intercepted 1,890 illegal border crossers in the first three months of 2017. In the same period in 2018, that number soared to 5,052. Over the Easter Weekend alone, more than 600 crossed into Quebec, and provincial officials are expecting more than 400 per day as the weather gets warmer. Much of this activity is in Saint-Bernard-deLacolle, Que., where it’s particularly easy to cross over from Champlain, New York.
NOT SEEN AS CRIMINAL BY LAW
In the House of Commons, the Conservatives use the term “illegal migrant” while the Liberals and the NDP prefer the term “irregular migrants.” It is illegal to cross into Canada without first passing through a port of entry. Indeed, any border-crosser at Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle will pass by a bilingual sign saying “it is illegal to cross the border here” — and they will also be told as much by the area’s substantial police presence. However, while someone can be charged for entering Canada without authorization, those charges are waived once someone makes an asylum claim.
TORIES BLAME TRUDEAU’S TWEET
In January last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted, “to those fleeing persecution, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith.” It was a direct response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s so-called “travel ban,” an executive order banning all travel from seven countries with large Muslim populations. Trudeau’s post has received 412,000 retweets to date, making it one of the most circulated tweets of 2017. In a recent House of Commons speech, Conservative public safety critic Pierre Paul-Hus called the tweet “the root of ” illegal border crossings. And the data seems to back him up. The month before the tweet, the RCMP intercepted 315 illegal border-crossers. The next month that doubled to 678 — and kept climbing until it reached a peak of 5,712 by August 2017.
LEGAL LOOPHOLE EASILY PATCHED
Canada faced its last major wave of migrants from the United States in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. This prompted the government of Jean Chrétien to draw up the Safe Third Country Agreement with the United States. This agreement holds that any non-American seeking refugee protection at the U.S.-Canada border must have first filed a refugee claim with the Americans. Thus, it effectively allows guards at Canadian land borders to turn away most asylum seekers on the grounds that they are already in a safe country. There’s just one problem: The agreement only refers to refugee claims made at a “port of entry.” Thus, if someone slips past a port of entry and enters Canada illegally in order to make an inland asylum claim, the agreement doesn’t apply. As Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel has pointed out, however, the agreement gives Canada’s minister of immigration a wide berth to decide what constitutes a “port of entry.” Were Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen to declare the entire Canadian border a port of entry, officials could turn away many overland asylum claimants from the U.S. without passing their claims on to the refugee board.
UNLIKELY ILLEGAL CROSSINGS WILL END
When the wave of border-crossing began in early 2017, the migrants were reported to be mostly Haitians fearing deportation from the U.S. after Trump announced the end of temporary amnesty enacted in the wake of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Recently, the demographics have changed and border-crossers are now predominantly Nigerian. What’s more, most appear to be entering the U.S. on recently acquired tourist visas for the sole purpose of slipping into Canada. “They land in the United States, where they stay for a very short period of time, and then make their way to Canada,” Hursh Jaswal, communications director for the immigration minister, told the Canadian Press. Once an asylum seeker is deemed to be a refugee claimant, they are able to obtain work permits, as well as access Canadian health care, public schools and even social assistance.
THE BACKLOG IS OUT OF CONTROL
Well before the first day of summer, the number of asylum seekers who entered Canada illegally will surpass the 25,000 Syrian refugees accepted into the country in 2016. These border crossings — coupled with rising rates of refugee claims across the board — are putting an unsustainable strain on the country’s refugee system. At the beginning of 2017, the Immigration and Refugee Board counted a total queue of 18,644 refugee claimants. As of March 31, this has more than doubled to 48,974. The board can only process about 1,000 to 2,000 cases per month.
CROSSERS COULD FACE DE-FACTO AMNESTY
According to the government, the refugee system is meant to protect people who face death, “danger of torture” or cruel and unusual punishment if they return to their home country. Some claimants from Haiti and Nigeria will fit that description, such as gay men or those from places threatened by Boko Haram. But neither country fits the criteria for a war zone. Of the 2,552 claims from illegal border crossers finalized in 2017, only 53 per cent were accepted as refugees. But it is taking longer to process refugee claims. In October the wait time was 16 months. In February, it was 20 months. According to an internal IRB report, if current rates of crossing continue, the wait could be as long as 11 years by 2021. “Realistically, if it’s going to take 10 years to get a refugee hearing … you’ve almost got de facto amnesty,” said Raj Sharma, an immigration lawyer and former refugee protection officer.