November 2015

The first file I opened in 2015 was for a man from a central African country. He had come to Canada after witnessing the murder of a member of his religious community by a man who worked in the office of the country’s President.  He reported the shooting to the police, and named the shooter. 

October 2015

On October 19, 2015, Canadian citizens residing in Canada have the right to vote in the federal election.  Immigration and refugee law has become a major issue in the campaign. The number of refugee that Canada will accept, especially from Syria, is a story that has captivated journalists.  The issue of whether the niqab can be worn during citizenship ceremonies has been another controversial subject.  But that is not all.  How many parents and grandparents we allow to be sponsored, and the length of time it takes to process family class applications is another hot topic.  Finally, the issue of whether or not non-resident Canadian citizens can vote in the election has also been in the news.

Never before have immigration issues taken up so much of the election. This means how you vote will affect immigration law in Canada in the months and years to come.

September 2015

Recently I was invited to speak at the Migrant Workers’ Forum, hosted by the Migrant Ministry of Assumption Church in Ottawa. I had been asked to speak about changes to Canada’s immigration system affecting live-in caregivers. A copy of my PowerPoint presentation can be found here. The audience was primarily female, almost all of whom had come as live-in caregivers from Philippines.

August 2015

Two topics for this month’s newsletter: