Is Canada Home? How A Text Could Change That

I am Canadian, or so a certain beer titan tells me. But what makes one Canadian? There are so many varied views on this, and the Canadian Federal Government has theirs: either you are born one, or you are on the lucky side of a day and a test.

There is the citizen, with all the rights and privileges like voting, running for public office and living anywhere around the world. And there is the Permanent Resident. They are non-citizen Canadian residents, in a zone between visitors and citizens. They have most of the citizenship rights but cannot vote or run for office. They must spend a prescribed amount of time in Canada—approximately four years— and pass a test to qualify for citizenship. On the surface it appears fair and balanced, but some peeling exposes an unpleasant layer.

Permanent Residents can be deported to their “home” countries for criminal convictions. A two-year jail sentence was an automatic ticket out. Two years is meaningful because that is when the sentence is served in a federal jail to reflect more serious crimes. Shorter sentences meant that Permanent Residents could plead their deportation order before the Immigration Appeal Division; it is an independent tribunal—a check on the government’s immigration powers. It would hear both sides. The Permanent Resident would have a fighting chance.

The law has recently changed, and now a  six-months-or-higher jail sentence is an automatic deportation with no chance to appeal. The Permanent Resident can petition the Citizenship and Immigration Minister to stop it, but it’s like the slim chance of the executioner staying the blade.

Law-abiding Permanent Residents may not worry about this; they steer wide of criminal activities. But lets be candid: many people use their phones while driving. It may be those boredom-busting chats, or for that slayer of navigation frustration we call GPS. It could be that text message that cannot wait. Many do it and will continue to. But if you cause an accident while using a phone and injure or kill someone, then it is likely a criminal offence—punishable with a six-months-or-higher jail sentence. This begs an uncomfortable question: is it fair to deport someone because of the confluence of a poor decision at an unfortunate moment, or simply because a crime has that maximum punishment?

There is no legal difference between a Permanent Resident who has been in Canada for a day or a decade, and this exposes a contentious element of this law. The Permanent Resident can be the 55-year-old teacher living in Canada since infancy to the neighbor who arrived last week. Both will be deported. This law does not discriminate and it targets without prejudice. The Immigration Appeal Division’s ability to stop unjust deportations has been sharply curtailed. Now they can only hear appeals for sentences of six months or less.

Not all criminal cases are decided fairly or correctly. This is common knowledge. Issues with evidence and wrongful convictions are a reality of criminal justice. It’s why we have appeals courts. Yet this law strips away an important avenue for appeal. Perhaps some discrimination is needed here.

Many crimes are due to isolated and exceptional circumstances. The man who stole his ex-girlfriend’s mail simply to spite her can be sentenced to a six-months-or-higher jail sentence.

His otherwise stellar record and contributions to the community is irrelevant. It’s a lifetime punishment for a bad decision— a very human trait. Canadians should question whether these are fair grounds to exile our neighbors and strip them of their liberty to live here.

Why a day and a test? Permanent Residents who are a day short of the residency time for citizenship are subject to this law, along with those who have lived in Canada for decades but have not passed the test. Misfortune smiles on the one who has spent her life in Canada but whose English is not sufficient for the test.

There are compelling and legitimate reasons for this law; terrorism for example and a nation’s need for robust immigration rules. But laws must be balanced against individual rights- the foundation of our liberal democracy.

What do you do if you are a Permanent Resident? Avoid anything remotely criminal, finish your residency requirements and pass the exam. Do not be a day and a test short.