Acceptance rate on rise for Roma refugees

Canada’s acceptance of Hungarian Roma asylum-seekers is on an upswing after plummeting to record lows just a few years ago.

In 2009-10, only one to two per cent of refugee claimants from Hungary were accepted as the Conservative government initiated a crackdown on “bogus” refugees.

But data from the Immigration and Refugee Board show the acceptance rate has steadily increased: to 20 per cent in 2013, 35 per cent in 2014 and 68 per cent in the first half of 2015.

“The Canadian government designated Hungary as a safe country in 2012. These figures show that Hungary is not, in fact, a safe country for hundreds of recognized refugees,” said Sean Rehaag, an Osgoode Hall Law School professor specializing in immigration and refugee law.

Citizenship and immigration officials declined to comment on the apparent softening stance.

“Canada’s reformed asylum system continues to ensure that all eligible claimants — regardless of their country of origin — have access to a full, fact-based hearing before the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada,” spokeswoman Nancy Caron said in an email.

Refugee experts and advocates said one of many factors contributing to the rebound is the growing evidence of persecution of the ethnic Roma minority in Hungary.

A 2014 study by the Harvard School of Public Health found recent years have seen a “climate of increasing social and economic exclusion.” State officials often use racist public statements to incite hate against Roma, and paramilitary extremist groups have organized anti-Roma rallies, it added.

“Everyone grew up with this concept of Gypsies being this nomadic, bohemian subculture and they had a hard time connecting: who are these people coming from Europe claiming racially motivated violence and lack of state protection?” said Gina Csanyi-Robah, founder of the Canadian Romani Alliance.

“A lot of people have been educated about that now.”

The Canadian government’s tightening of refugee laws in recent years may also have had the effect of weeding out Roma seeking to abuse the system and forcing those making claims to come better prepared and with more documentation, observers say.

In 2012, Canada placed Hungary on a list of countries deemed unlikely to produce genuine refugees. As a result, claims from these countries would be processed much more quickly, claimants would be ineligible for health care or work permits while they waited, and rejected claimants could not appeal. (The federal court deemed some of these restrictions unconstitutional; the government has appealed.)

The Canadian government also put up billboards and distributed flyers in Roma communities overseas, warning would-be claimants they likely faced swift deportation if they lacked valid reasons.

There are now a few hundred claimants annually from Hungary — a steep drop from 2009-11 when claims easily surpassed 2,000 a year.

“Before, Roma were coming here and they didn’t really understand exactly what it was that characterized a refugee … They’ve learned that if you’re coming, you’d better bring evidence with you,” CsanyiRobah said.