Poste - Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children

C A N A D I A N C O A L I T I O N F O R T H E R I G H T S O F C H I L D R E N
When the family lands in Canada, they immediately
become permanent residents.
Over half of the refugees who are landed in Canada
each year claim Convention refugee status at a border
point or from within the country (“inland”). If the person
is accepted as a Convention refugee, he or she is eligible
to apply for permanent resident status. Immediate family
members, whether in Canada or abroad, may be included
on the application for permanent residence. If the person
is not found to be a Convention refugee, he or she faces
deportation from Canada. According to the Joint Centre
of Excellence for Research on Immigration and
Settlement—Toronto:
Among all industrialized countries, Canada has one of the
most generous rates of acceptance of refugee claims: in
1992, when Italy, Belgium, and Norway granted asylum to
only 10 percent of refugee claimants and Germany to only
4 percent, Canada accepted more than 50 percent of
refugee claims. 11
The number of refugee claims made in Canada has
increased from 500 in 1977 to 24,000 in 1997. 12 Andrew
Brouwer, manager of the Refugee and Immigrant Program
of The Maytree Foundation, says that “the increasing
accessibility of international travel means that it is often as
easy or easier for refugees to flee directly to Canada than
to seek temporary asylum in a neighbouring country first.
Others live ‘underground’ in a neighbouring country for a
time before making it to Canada to claim asylum.” 13
According to the Auditor General, the “current practice
dictates that from the time claimants arrive in Canada, and
for as long as they remain and their claim is making its
way through the process, they qualify for many of the
benefits granted to landed immigrants, such as social
assistance, legal aid, education and health care. The
provinces, in administering these benefits, thus have some
influence on refugee-related issues.” 14
Refugees Landed in Canada 15
1997 1996 1995
Government-Assisted 7,710 7,846 8,191
Privately Sponsored 2,660 3,073 3,251
Refugees Landed in Canada 10,629 13,842 13,778
Dependents Abroad 3,223 3,554 2,535
Total Refugees 24,222 28,315 27,755
102
Legislation
Canada’s legislation governing immigration and refugees
is the Immigration Act (1976-77, c.52, s.1), which was
passed in 1976. Citizenship and Immigration Canada is
the federal department that administers the Act. The
definition of refugee, which has been incorporated into
the Immigration Act (s.2.(1)), comes from the 1951
United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of
Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. The United Nations
Convention on the Rights of the Child has not been
incorporated into the Immigration Act or Regulations.
Canadian law allows for children to make their own
refugee claims. The Immigration Act does not set out
specific procedures or criteria for dealing with the claims
of children, however, except for the designation of a
person to represent the child in Immigration and Refugee
Board hearings.
The Immigration Act stipulates that refugee claims are
to be heard by the Convention Refugee Determination
Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board. This
Division is an administrative tribunal with inquiry
powers.
The Immigration Act governs all of Canada’s asylum
seekers, but Quebec is unique in that the Canada-Quebec
Accord, signed in 1991, gives Quebec sole responsibility
for selecting independent immigrants and refugees
abroad who plan to settle in Quebec. Reception and
integration services provided by Quebec must be
equivalent to those provided by the federal government
elsewhere in the country. The federal government
maintains responsibility for defining general immigrant
categories, setting the number of admissions per year, and
enforcement. 16
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
guarantees that everyone is entitled to life, liberty and
security. The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that
these rights apply, not only to Canadian citizens and
permanent residents, but to all persons within Canada’s
borders. Under the Charter, individuals have the right not
to be detained without just cause; the right, upon arrest or
detention, to be informed promptly of the reasons, the
right to retain and instruct counsel without delay and the
right to challenge detention by habeas corpus. The
Supreme Court of Canada further said that any claim
having a minimum credible basis for refugee status must
be heard. 17