Canadians Want To Help Government In Solving Human Smuggling

 “Canada is in an excellent position to help Tamil refugees. There is a large and vibrant Tamil-Canadian community that has a history of promoting human rights and integrating refugees. We are ready, willing and able to help put an end to this (Tamil refugee) crisis,” Rathika Sitsabaiesan (Scarborough – Rouge River)

VANCOUVER:  Federal Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s recent remarks about the intercepted Tamil refugee ship have spur a sharp reaction from Tamil community and also the New Democrats.

Kenney had said that the Tamil ship intercepted in Indonesia was a case of human smuggling and there was urgent need to punish those involved in it. New Democrats on the other hand feel there is a need to solve the Tamil Refugee problem from the root. The introduction of stringent laws is a half-hearted attempt which would rather impact legitimate refugees.  The Tamil community too has come forward to solve the problem at root level.

Kenney had said that the human smuggling ship intercepted by Indonesia appeared to have been “destined for Canada”. According to him it was a clear case of migrants paying money by human smugglers to come to Canada. He said Canada would welcome only legitimate refugees but will not allow human smuggling. Most of the time people abuse refugee system to come to Canada for economic gains. And if they are actually refugees they can come by a official procedure set under by the UN.

“They don’t need to pay the highest price point for smuggling to cross the Pacific Ocean to Canada,” he said.

NDP, on the other hand, called refugee ships a “larger humanitarian crisis.” According to New Democrats it is a problem which should be solved from the root level. “The Conservative government must establish a settlement program for Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka if it hopes to effectively address human trafficking,” said New Democrat Critic for Immigration and Citizenship, Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway).

Kenney said there was a need for the government to pass Bill C-4. “It is designed to send a clear message to those who would abuse the generosity of Canada’s immigration and refugee systems and who treat this country like a doormat, that they will not longer be able to do so, so freely in Canada.”

The bill, he said, would seek to increase these penalties, the criminal penalties including imposing up to maximum a $10-million fine for the owners of the ship and increasing the penal sanctions for the prison sentences for those involved in the – in designated smuggling operations

On the other hand, Davies said, “If we are going to put an end to refugees risking their lives and paying exorbitant amounts of money to human smugglers we have to address the root of the problem. Until the international community addresses this crisis and has an effective resettlement program for legitimate Tamil refugees, desperation will drive these people to embark on more dangerous journeys.”

New Democrats want resources to resettle Tamil refugees following the Sri Lankan civil war. “Unfortunately the Conservative government seems to favour criminalising legitimate refugees over working with international partners to ensure those facing persecution are able to find security,” Davies said.

Jasbir Sandhu the New Democrat critic for Public Safety echoed the need for a multi-faceted approach to the issue. “By establishing a more streamlined, legitimate refugee resettlement program, we would be eliminating the criminal element that may currently be involved in these boat voyages,” said Sandhu. “The Government is not going to fix the problem of human smuggling with half measures.”

Rathika Sitsabaiesan (Scarborough – Rouge River) noted that Canada is in an excellent position to help Tamil refugees. “There is a large and vibrant Tamil-Canadian community that has a history of promoting human rights and integrating refugees. We are ready, willing and able to help put an end to this crisis.”