2. According to the Vancouver Sun, hundreds and possibly thousands, of Canadian-born children are being denied access to the most basic services -a home, food, health care and schooling. They are being denied these necessities because their fathers abused their immigrant mothers, their mothers fled the relationship, and the fathers then reneged on promises to sponsor the women for permanent residency. If elected, how are you planning on addressing the proposed introduction of a conditional permanent residence period of two years or more for spouses and partners sponsored as part of the family class or spouse or common-law partner in Canada class category who are in a relationship of two years or less with their sponsor at the time of sponsorship application?
3. One of the objectives of Immigration and Refugee Protection Act is to facilitate family reunification. This allows Canadian citizens or permanent residents to sponsor close family members for immigration to Canada, including spouses, partners and dependent children. According to an Access to Information request provided to the Canadian Migration Institute, targets for family class sponsorships are increasingly lower – 2011 targets are below both 2010 and 2009. How would you and your party support family reunification?
4. 2008 marked the first time in Canadian history that we as a country admitted more foreign workers than permanent residents to our country. Despite this increase, temporary workers not only lack status but are denied protection, services and access to information on their rights. If elected, what will you do to ensure temporary foreign workers have their rights fulfilled?
5. Security certificates have been increasingly used by the government to detain permanent residents and foreign nationals in Canada on the basis that they are suspected to have links to terrorism. In a number of recent decisions Canada’s courts have been highly critical of Security Certificates. Both the Federal and Supreme Court of Canada found that they have been used to violate an individual’s rights to fundamental justice and due process and have been used to keep individuals detained on misleading and unverified evidence. If elected, would your government maintain the Security Certificates provisions in the IRPA? What changes would you propose?
6. According to documents released by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Canadian citizen Abousfian Abdelrazik was jailed, tortured and beaten while on a visit to Sudan – all at the recommendation of Canadian Security and Intelligence Service. Despite never being charged, and eventually being released of all suspicion by Sudan, Abdelrazik was placed on the UN 1267 list, which imposes a travel ban, an arms embargo and a total asset freeze on individuals. Abdelrazik was then repeatedly denied travel and entrance to Canada. A Federal Court judge eventually ordered the government to repatriate Abdelrazik, and in 2009 he returned home to Montreal. However, he has been unable to return to a normal life because his name remains on the 1267 list and he is unable to accept any material aid (including a salary or health insurance). The delisting process for the UN 1267 list requires a vote by the UN Security Council. Support from the Canadian government is absolutely essential if Abdelrazik's name is to be removed from this list so his life can return to normal. What would you and your party do to support the removal of Abdelrazik's name from the 1267 list? (For more info, visit: http://www.peoplescommission.org/en/abdelrazik/summary.php)