11 May 2009

Canadian PM encouraged to tighten Canadian visa laws for Czech refugees

The Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has indicated that he may re-introduce Canadian visa requirements for Czech Roman citizens visiting Canada, since a surge in Canadian visa applications has resulted in the Czech Republic to be the seventh largest source of refugee claimants in Canada.

The Canadian visa  requirements for Czech visitors to Canada were lifted in late 2007, and according to Canada.com news, Harper is considering reinstating those requirements to avoid Canada being swamped by asylum seekers. 

In 2008, 853 Czech nationals applied for a Canadian visa using asylum as their motive, and Harper says some action needs to be taken.

"It's not necessarily the fault of the Czech Republic, but it is a reality that we do have to deal with."

The Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek expressed different views, saying that the Roma people are not discriminated against or persecuted, but that they are "economic migrants" taking advantage of the Canadian immigration system.

"Canada has a . . . very soft asylum procedure," he said.

"And it's very easy to get asylum in Canada, and for that reason it is being targeted by individuals who seek economic (gain) rather than any other asylum."

Despite this, Topolanek acknowledged that the lifting of the Canadian visa requirements two years ago has been taken advantage of by his nationals.

While Immigration Minister Jason Kenney will be visiting the Czech Republic soon to investigate the state of affairs, Harper is being encouraged to take affirmative action and strongly pressure Topolanek to pass an anti-discrimination law as required by the European Union. 

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The Canadian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people apply for Canada visa and immigration services.