Immigration lawyers have moved quickly to respond to the disaster in Haiti.
Following the earthquake, for example, the Canadian Bar Association
announced it was setting up a web site to facilitate links between
practitioners willing to help with the immigration process and those
seeking to bring their Haitian relatives here.
The Canadian government has been proactive as well. In the immediate
aftermath of the earthquake, it promised significant assistance,
particularly by matching Canadians’ donations to the ravaged country.
At the same time, it vowed to fast-track immigration sponsorship
applications so Haitians with ties to Canada can come here more quickly.
Not surprisingly, the move has generated debate. Canadians in the
process of adopting Haitian children, for example, complained last week
the government wasn’t doing enough to help them get their kids to
Canada.
At the same time, advocacy groups said the government should
open the immigration sponsorship class to include siblings, cousins,
and other extended family members. In addition, as reporter Tim Naumetz
has described in Law Times this week, some lawyers worry Haitians
looking to come here will face legal obstacles, in particular the
requirement that they have a passport.
On the other side are concerns that opening the doors so widely to
immigration applications will allow people who would otherwise be
ineligible to get permanent residency here. A common issue raised is
the fact that the earthquake
allowed prisoners in Haiti to go free, some of whom could apply to come
to Canada under an expedited process. Is it appropriate, then, to
change how we do things given the risks? Should Canada not have a
standard way of handling immigration matters that apply to all
scenarios?
So far, the government is right to be cautious by facilitating Haitian
cases while keeping the basic immigration rules intact. What’s
important is to make sure that the measures announced don’t create
unintended consequences by, for example, allowing dangerous people into
the country.
At the same time, if we find the rules are unduly
restrictive and don’t achieve the goal of facilitating family
reunification, the government should loosen them. But first, let’s give
officials a chance to try out the expedited process.
Balance, then, is key. While we shouldn’t jump to change the rules too
quickly, the scale of the Haitian disaster is so unprecedented that
doing so may be necessary.
In the meantime, the Conservatives deserve credit for reacting so
quickly to the humanitarian crisis. It’s rare to see a government so
often associated with divisiveness and meanness act so magnanimously.
Whatever the merit of Conservative policies, Prime Minister Stephen
Harper has never shown much eagerness to truly govern in the interests
of all Canadians, including those who didn’t vote for him. But now,
we’re seeing him take decisive action on an issue we all care about.
Let’s hope his actions on Haiti are a signal he’ll act similarly in the
future.
