Experts warn of Bill C-2 as 'anti-refugee' and 'anti-immigrant' giving Canada 'unchecked powers' like the U.S.
Bill C-2 gives power to pause, cancel and suspend immigration documents
Mbonisi Zikhali came to Canada in 2009 from Zimbabwe to pursue a master's in journalism at Carleton University. Post-graduation, the international student found himself homeless in Windsor and applied for refugee status – a privilege soon unavailable if Bill C-2 becomes the law.
"The bill is unnecessary and not sympathetic at all to people's well-being," Zikhali said.
Many experts and community groups working with newcomers in Canada agree.
They are calling the Liberal government's sweeping new legislation, Bill C-2 or the Strong Borders Act, "anti-immigrant and anti-refugee," and say they hoping the legislation does not become law.
Zikhali said he came on scholarship and in 2012 found himself in Windsor picking tomatoes at a greenhouse. Soon enough, he was living on the streets, and lost his passport which also had his study permit in it. Applying for refugee status, Zikhali said, was his saving grace and worries this bill will deprive vulnerable people of a safe haven.
What is Bill C-2?
The legislation proposes changes to a number of laws including the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
Specifically it allows officials to cancel, suspend or change immigration documents immediately, pause the acceptance of new applications and cancel applications already in process if deemed in the public interest.
Asylum claims would also have to be made within a year of entering the country, including for international students and temporary residents.
Take this hypothetical: An Afghan international student who came to study here in July 2020. When the Taliban takes over in August 2021 and things become uncertain back home, that student could have applied for asylum. But with this bill, the one-year time period would have lapsed and they would be ineligible.
The immigration changes would also require irregular border crossers — people who enter Canada between official ports of entry — to make an asylum claim within 14 days of arriving in Canada.
Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab is defending the measures.
"There's a lot of applications in the system. We need to act fairly, and treat people appropriately who really do need to claim asylum and who really do need to be protected to stay in Canada," Diab told CBC News.
"We need to be more efficient in doing that. At the same time, Canadians demand that we have a system that works for everyone."
'Very U.S.-like' bill: refugee help centre director says
Windsor's Matthew House gives refugees a place to live and helps them with resettlement. Mike Morency, the organization's executive director, says he worries this bill will put more vulnerable people at greater harm.
"It continues to align our immigration system with that of the United States," Morency said.
"Refugee claimants are not the problem. The one year-ban is a major concern for us. The other major concern for us is the ability of the government to declare an emergency and suspend applications. That one to me feels very U.S.-like."
Morency said he understands the government's will to try to cut back on international students and migrant workers making a refugee claim as a way to stay in Canada, but worries for people who have a legitimate need for protection being unfairly targeted.
"It also feels very much like a workaround to our commitment to the Geneva Convention. If the government wants to step out of the Geneva Convention, then then we need to do it with integrity and we need to approach the UN and say we're going to withdraw," he said.
Syed Hussan, spokesperson for the Migrant Rights Network, agrees saying the bill violates Canada's "most basic legal obligations" and is "immoral".
'Gives the government unchecked power to take away people's status': Migrant Rights Network
Hussan asserts the bill infringes upon Canada's legal commitments and ethical standards by granting the government excessive authority to cancel permits.
"Every refugee gets to have the right to have their case heard. That's now being taken away," he said.
"Collectively it's a bill that gives the government unchecked power to take away people's status… This is an anti-immigrant and anti-refugee bill. It's illegal."
Without any ability for people to appeal or have their case individually heard, Hussan said, the bill allows the government to "make people undocumented or just throw people out of the country in the hundreds of thousands".
The changes also allow the federal immigration department to share information more widely with different agencies within Canada. Hussan said anyone who was not a citizen or later became a citizen will have their data impacted by the bill.
Hassan said this is similar to the US immigration policies.
"This is Carney's first test and he's failed it. He's no different from Donald Trump."
'Major rollback of rights,' 'disservice to refugees': Queen's university law professor
Sharry Aiken, professor of law at Queen's University, also finds the bill troubling.
"Very disappointing. It's a betrayal of many Canadians that supported this government in the most recent election," she said, noting these issues weren't part of the Liberal election campaign.
The omnibus bill, she said, is quite complicated with 16 different parts and neither serves to reform the asylum system nor address Canadians' privacy rights.
Typically, omnibus bills don't get the degree of parliamentary scrutiny and oversight, she said, which is concerning. Aiken said the one year-bar for asylum claimants represents "a major rollback of rights".
"No longer are these claimants eligible for a hearing before the Refugee Protection Division," she said.
The division of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) hears and decides claims for refugee protection in Canada.
Aikens said this "arbitrary" bill will also very quickly develop a backlog.
"The bill proposes a legislative fix for a problem that doesn't require new law. It requires operational intervention," she said.
"This one year rule mimics what's in place in the U.S. and what has been the subject of extensive international criticism… This bill does a disservice to refugees and betrays the Canadian public's trust in the Liberal government for ensuring a fair refugee determination system consistent with international standards."
She urges the MPs to separate out the provisions having the issues desegregated.
'Will make the process more cumbersome': immigration lawyer
Toronto-based immigration lawyer, Mario Bellissimo, said with the bill creating "arbitrary distinctions" of 14 days and one year after June 2020, "an individualized assessment" approach is being taken away.
While the number of refugee claimants have recently dipped, Bellissimo said the bill signals that Canada wants to potentially limit immigration.
"It wants to send messages to individuals who want to traverse the system over many years without legitimate claims that this is not a destination of choice for you," he said.
Bellissimo agrees that targeting individuals who impact the immigration system in a negative way is important but the bill will end up targeting individuals in genuine need of assistance.
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With files from Raffy Boudjikanian