Tyler Fleming
CTV News Ottawa Multi-Skilled Journalist
Published Nov. 9, 2024
As the possibility of mass deportations looms following Donald Trump's re-election on Tuesday, border towns like the City of Cornwall are preparing for a potential influx of asylum seekers.
"The initial response is panic," says Steve Densley, a local resident.
"This is a good thing and immigration is what Canada is known for. We'll have more people that are coming and they will work. They will get jobs, and they'll commit to society like it's always been."
The RCMP are on 'high alert'(opens in a new tab) as many fear an increase in migrants seeking refuge in Canada, particularly in Quebec, and other border towns.
"We're probably going to have more officers on the ground, more roving patrols," says Sgt. Charles Poirier of the RCMP.
"And depending on the scale of it all we might have to rent a space, buy some buildings like we did in the past, buy some more police cruisers, charge some buses like we've done in the past."
Cornwall Mayor Justin Towndale anticipates an increase in asylum seekers in the coming months before Trump takes office in January and is urging the federal government for more funding to handle the expected surge.
"And depending on the scale of it all we might have to rent a space, buy some buildings like we did in the past, buy some more police cruisers, charge some buses like we've done in the past."
Cornwall Mayor Justin Towndale anticipates an increase in asylum seekers in the coming months before Trump takes office in January and is urging the federal government for more funding to handle the expected surge.
Earlier this year, the federal government ended funding for temporary refugee housing at the Dev Centre in the city, where 500 migrants, including children, were forced to find new accommodation.
"We're happy to do it again, we're ready to do it again and we have enough experience to do it again, but I would once again reiterate my calls to the federal government to help us out in that regard. We're still looking for assistance with the cost that we incurred at an administrative level," said Towndale.
"We're just asking for our fair share and the federal government has been very, very, very generous to cities like Toronto and Ottawa and much, much larger municipalities."
Martha Woods, executive director with the Eastern Ontario Training Board, which offers employment services to newcomers, says local groups such as theirs are ready to provide all the necessary services.
"From housing, to schooling, to legal aid, clothing to household items, there's a lot that goes into it," said Woods.
"It has happened before so if it happens again, we're definitely ready for it. It will be a conversation around the table at our next local immigration partnership meeting in terms of if we do see that influx we will be ready with boots on the ground again."
On Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the revival of a special cabinet committee(opens in a new tab) dedicated to Canada-U.S. relations focusing on "critical" issues between the two countries. Among the cabinet ministers sitting on the committee is Immigration Minister Marc Miller.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said he was briefed on contingency plans drawn up by the RCMP and the CBSA but declined to go into specifics.
With files from CTV National News
"We're happy to do it again, we're ready to do it again and we have enough experience to do it again, but I would once again reiterate my calls to the federal government to help us out in that regard. We're still looking for assistance with the cost that we incurred at an administrative level," said Towndale.
"We're just asking for our fair share and the federal government has been very, very, very generous to cities like Toronto and Ottawa and much, much larger municipalities."
Martha Woods, executive director with the Eastern Ontario Training Board, which offers employment services to newcomers, says local groups such as theirs are ready to provide all the necessary services.
"From housing, to schooling, to legal aid, clothing to household items, there's a lot that goes into it," said Woods.
"It has happened before so if it happens again, we're definitely ready for it. It will be a conversation around the table at our next local immigration partnership meeting in terms of if we do see that influx we will be ready with boots on the ground again."
On Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the revival of a special cabinet committee(opens in a new tab) dedicated to Canada-U.S. relations focusing on "critical" issues between the two countries. Among the cabinet ministers sitting on the committee is Immigration Minister Marc Miller.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said he was briefed on contingency plans drawn up by the RCMP and the CBSA but declined to go into specifics.
With files from CTV National News
A border crossing in Cornwall, Ont. on Nov. 8, 2024. (Tyler Fleming/CTV Ottawa)
US, Canada Tougher Border Rules Leave Little Choice for Migrants
Millions of undocumented migrants facing prospects of mass deportation under US President-Elect Donald Trump are unlikely to find refuge in the country’s northern neighbor this time around.
Bloomberg News
Randy Thanthong-Knight
Published Nov 08, 2024 •
5zmimnot)7(pieajr749xo{1_media_dl_1.png Immigration and Refugee Board of
Article content
(Bloomberg) — Millions of undocumented migrants facing prospects of mass deportation under US President-Elect Donald Trump are unlikely to find refuge in the country’s northern neighbor this time around.
During Trump’s first White House term, his 2017 travel ban on Muslim-majority countries, suspension of refugee intakes and uncertainty around the protected status of Haitians sent the number of migrants crossing into Canada soaring. And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared to greet them with open arms, posting on social media: “To those fleeing persecution, terror and war, Canadians will welcome you.”
But since then, post-pandemic influxes of asylum seekers that overwhelmed shelter systems across Canada led to the closing of a loophole that allowed refugee claims at irregular entry points such as a rural road north of Plattsburgh, New York. Meanwhile, rapid surges of foreign students and workers have soured Canadian support for mass immigration, forcing Trudeau to drastically restrict inflows and halt the country’s population growth.
Canada’s policy turnaround is a departure from its previous embrace of newcomers and brings its stance on curbing migration closer to that of the US and many of its peer European countries. It also suggests a repeat of large-scale irregular crossings seen in recent years is now doubtful, even though the US and Canada share the world’s longest undefended border.
“This sense of panic, the sense that they’re better off in Canada and that they go through whatever they have to go through to cross the border — it’s less likely than it was before because there are just so many obstacles that are now in the way,” said Pia Zambelli, chairwoman of the refugee committee at the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association.
In closing the loophole last year, the US and Canada have effectively sealed their borders, substantially cutting down irregular crossings. Under the current rules, asylum seekers entering Canada from the US risk being turned back at the border, which raises their probability of being detained and deported from the US if they’re undocumented.
Some refugees have instead turned to smugglers to help them cross the border and go into hiding for 14 days, a period after which they could file asylum claims in Canada. But the journey can be perilous, involves crossing bodies of water or forests and sometimes in cold and harsh weather. Eight migrants drowned in the St. Lawrence River trying to reach the US last year and an Indian family of four froze to death in Manitoba in 2022, examples of how dangerous the voyage can be.
Advocates for refugee rights have been pushing for Canada to rescind the so-called Safe Third Country Agreement with the US to allow migrants to seek asylum in Canada without the risk of being denied entry.
“This agreement is built on the premise that the US is a safe place to return asylum seekers to and that their actions won’t place Canada in breach of its international legal obligation,” said Julia Sande, a lawyer for Amnesty International Canada. “Canada also has a duty to monitor the situation. We would say that as of today, that’s not the case.”
Trump’s threat to deport undocumented migrants has alarmed many economists and businesses. The impact would likely land hardest in industries like construction, leisure and hospitality – and states including Texas, Florida and California – where migrants make up the biggest share of the labor force.
Many doubt that deportations of migrants are feasible on the scale Trump has proposed. He’s floated using the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement or even the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 — last used to justify World War II-era internment of non-citizens — to carry out the plan, which would likely face court challenges.
Still, some Canadian officials have raised concern in recent days over the possibility of an increase in refugees after Trump won his second presidential term. Politicians from Quebec, which previously saw the influx from the Roxham Road crossing north of New York, have been most vocal.
“The kind of panic and fearmongering that we’re seeing from politicians — there’s no need to raise that kind of alarm,” said Gauri Sreenivasan, co-executive director at the Canadian Council for Refugees. “If we do see an increase, which would not surprise us, it’s not going to come overnight.”
Immigration Minister Marc Miller said Wednesday that Trudeau’s government will ensure that Canada has a “controlled flow” of migrants into the country. “Our interests are aligned with the US in making sure that we have a northern border that is secure.”
Canada’s national police force has “worked through various scenarios in the event of a sudden increase in irregular migration between official ports of entry at the Canada-US border,” the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in an email statement. The surges in recent years “provided us with the tools and insight necessary to address similar types of occurrences.”
Millions of undocumented migrants facing prospects of mass deportation under US President-Elect Donald Trump are unlikely to find refuge in the country’s northern neighbor this time around.
Bloomberg News
Randy Thanthong-Knight
Published Nov 08, 2024 •
5zmimnot)7(pieajr749xo{1_media_dl_1.png Immigration and Refugee Board ofArticle content
(Bloomberg) — Millions of undocumented migrants facing prospects of mass deportation under US President-Elect Donald Trump are unlikely to find refuge in the country’s northern neighbor this time around.
During Trump’s first White House term, his 2017 travel ban on Muslim-majority countries, suspension of refugee intakes and uncertainty around the protected status of Haitians sent the number of migrants crossing into Canada soaring. And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared to greet them with open arms, posting on social media: “To those fleeing persecution, terror and war, Canadians will welcome you.”
But since then, post-pandemic influxes of asylum seekers that overwhelmed shelter systems across Canada led to the closing of a loophole that allowed refugee claims at irregular entry points such as a rural road north of Plattsburgh, New York. Meanwhile, rapid surges of foreign students and workers have soured Canadian support for mass immigration, forcing Trudeau to drastically restrict inflows and halt the country’s population growth.
Canada’s policy turnaround is a departure from its previous embrace of newcomers and brings its stance on curbing migration closer to that of the US and many of its peer European countries. It also suggests a repeat of large-scale irregular crossings seen in recent years is now doubtful, even though the US and Canada share the world’s longest undefended border.
“This sense of panic, the sense that they’re better off in Canada and that they go through whatever they have to go through to cross the border — it’s less likely than it was before because there are just so many obstacles that are now in the way,” said Pia Zambelli, chairwoman of the refugee committee at the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association.
In closing the loophole last year, the US and Canada have effectively sealed their borders, substantially cutting down irregular crossings. Under the current rules, asylum seekers entering Canada from the US risk being turned back at the border, which raises their probability of being detained and deported from the US if they’re undocumented.
Some refugees have instead turned to smugglers to help them cross the border and go into hiding for 14 days, a period after which they could file asylum claims in Canada. But the journey can be perilous, involves crossing bodies of water or forests and sometimes in cold and harsh weather. Eight migrants drowned in the St. Lawrence River trying to reach the US last year and an Indian family of four froze to death in Manitoba in 2022, examples of how dangerous the voyage can be.
Advocates for refugee rights have been pushing for Canada to rescind the so-called Safe Third Country Agreement with the US to allow migrants to seek asylum in Canada without the risk of being denied entry.
“This agreement is built on the premise that the US is a safe place to return asylum seekers to and that their actions won’t place Canada in breach of its international legal obligation,” said Julia Sande, a lawyer for Amnesty International Canada. “Canada also has a duty to monitor the situation. We would say that as of today, that’s not the case.”
Trump’s threat to deport undocumented migrants has alarmed many economists and businesses. The impact would likely land hardest in industries like construction, leisure and hospitality – and states including Texas, Florida and California – where migrants make up the biggest share of the labor force.
Many doubt that deportations of migrants are feasible on the scale Trump has proposed. He’s floated using the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement or even the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 — last used to justify World War II-era internment of non-citizens — to carry out the plan, which would likely face court challenges.
Still, some Canadian officials have raised concern in recent days over the possibility of an increase in refugees after Trump won his second presidential term. Politicians from Quebec, which previously saw the influx from the Roxham Road crossing north of New York, have been most vocal.
“The kind of panic and fearmongering that we’re seeing from politicians — there’s no need to raise that kind of alarm,” said Gauri Sreenivasan, co-executive director at the Canadian Council for Refugees. “If we do see an increase, which would not surprise us, it’s not going to come overnight.”
Immigration Minister Marc Miller said Wednesday that Trudeau’s government will ensure that Canada has a “controlled flow” of migrants into the country. “Our interests are aligned with the US in making sure that we have a northern border that is secure.”
Canada’s national police force has “worked through various scenarios in the event of a sudden increase in irregular migration between official ports of entry at the Canada-US border,” the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in an email statement. The surges in recent years “provided us with the tools and insight necessary to address similar types of occurrences.”
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