Costa Ricans sometimes tryto stayhere byclaiming to be Cuban
“ We can’t remove them,” the official said. “Eventually we have to release them. Sometimes all we can do is alert the police and let them go.”
Another CBSA official said that as word leaks out about the unofficial special status of Cubans, there have been cases of people arriving from other Latin American countries, who feel they have little legitimate grounds for a refugee claim, pretending they are from Cuba, hoping to benefit from the situation.
These attempts, notably by Costa Rican, Honduran and Guatemalan migrants, typically unravel when examined.
Currently, about 200 Cuban nationals are facing removal, according to the border agency, although some have appeals pending. The prospect of these people, who have been deemed inadmissible to Canada, actually being removed to Cuba in the foreseeable future is slim.
“ We need other countries to agree to accept back their nationals,” said Amélie Morin, spokeswoman for the CBSA.
“With Cuba, there is a law that stipulates Cuban nationals lose their residency rights if they are outside of their country for more than 11 months,” said Ms. Morin.
“ There are exceptions. For example, Cubans who are working for Cuban companies in Canada, long-term students, things like that. But when a Cuban national is leaving Cuba for more than 11 months, they are losing their residency rights, so it makes it difficult for us to remove Cuban nationals,” she said.
The impact of the Cuban policy is greater on Canada than many countries because of the lengthy process here for dealing with refugee claimants and the number of options available under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms for appeals.
“Our refugee determination system is fair and includes various levels of review — the pre-removal risk assessment, court actions, things like that — and can take more than 11 months,” said Ms. Morin. “Like any other claimants, they are entitled to exactly the same process as other foreign nations. There are no special rules for Cuban nationals; it is how our system is made.”
Réjean Beaulieu, spokesman for Foreign Affairs Canada, said the issue is being addressed at a senior diplomatic level.
“ We are well aware of this issue. We are having ongoing dialogue with senior Cuban officials to find what we call a mutually acceptable solution,” he said.
Ms. Morin said the CBSA is not about to force the issue by returning the Cuban nationals improperly, as Canada did in 1999 when dealing with a similar problem with Guyana.
“Such situation could also create a diplomatic incident.”
In December, 1999, the Canadian government chartered two private Learjets and dumped seven Guyanese nationals who had been convicted of serious crimes in Canada on the tarmac of the airport in the Guyanese capital.
Guyana’s government had not issued travel documents for any of the men, some after Canada had requested them for three years. At the time, Jacques Crête, then Canada’s high commissioner in Guyana, told the National Post: “ We were trying to do this in a very civilized way. More drastic action had to be taken ... We lost patience.”
The action, however, outraged Guyanese officials, who accused Canada of ignoring diplomacy and flouting international convention.
CBSA officials say the tactic is unlikely to be used again soon.
“I cannot say we will use charter flights for removing Cuban nationals,” said Ms. Morin.
Commercial airlines and other transportation carriers will not accept improperly documented passengers. They face fines and are financially responsible for returning the person to Canada.
Officials say there is also an expectation that Canada will act the same way it expects other nations to act.
Cubans form a small portion of Canada’s removals backlog, which stands at about 36,000.
The situation is only a problem for those Cubans who are not accepted as refugees — and, in fact, most are welcomed.
The acceptance rate of refugee claimants from Cuba — meaning the percentage of cases that end with a person being declared a legitimate refugee and allowed to stay in Canada — fluctuates greatly from year to year, according to figures from the Immigration and Refugee Board.
In 1989, the earliest year for which figures are available, 86% of all claimants were accepted as refugees, the highest figure on record. The following year, only 50% of Cuban claimants were accepted, which is the lowest acceptance rate on record.
In 2004, the acceptance rate for Cuban nationals claiming refugee status was 66%. The most recent figures are for the first six months of this year, when 63% were accepted.