When he heard on the news that the Canadian government was setting up a generous visa program for Ukrainians a few days after the Russian invasion began, Canada’s former adviser in Afghanistan – let’s call him John Doe 1 – had very mixed feelings.
“As a Canadian, I appreciate what the government is doing for Ukrainians. But at the same time, I don’t understand why my family and I are not entitled to the same consideration. Why are my constitutional rights violated? Because we have brown skin? said the man contacted in Ottawa.
John Doe 1 is one of two plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Canadian government in Federal Court. A lawsuit for discrimination. For violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. A lawsuit to denounce the double standard in the architecture of the immigration programs intended for Afghans and Ukrainians.
If he asks to use a fictitious name, it is because John Doe 1 believes that his relatives are still in danger in Afghanistan because of his role there. A Canadian citizen of Afghan origin, he answered the call from Ottawa, which was looking for advisers to guide its interventions in the Central Asian country. He left his Ontario comfort to work with soldiers deployed in the Kandahar region at the very end of the Canadian mission. In the eyes of the Taliban, he is a traitor, a collaborator of the “unbelievers”. His whole family has since been tagged, he says.
Since the same Taliban regained power in Kabul in August 2021, he has therefore been trying by all means to bring members of his extended family to Canada. He hits wall after wall.
The program the Canadian government has set up for Afghan-Canadians who are in the same situation as his – there are 45 of them – is too restrictive, he says, and does not allow him to bring his sister, who is is a refugee in Turkey, where she has no status, nor her half-brother, who lives in fear in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, the Visa Program for Ukrainians allows anyone with a Ukrainian passport to obtain a three-year Canadian visa.
The latter comes with a work permit, financial benefits and integration services. Ukrainian citizens can also apply for visas for their spouses and children, even if the latter are not Ukrainians.
Since the end of February 2022, under this unprecedented program, Canada has received just over 1 million applications and granted 767,647 visas. To date, 157,885 people have entered the country through this program, which has been extended until July 15. And all this in a period of 16 months.
And in the case of Afghanistan? Justin Trudeau’s government has promised to welcome at least 40,000 Afghans after the fall of the Kabul government. A first program is intended for Afghans who have worked for Canada and their relatives. Another to humanitarian immigration. The third targets the families of Canadian citizens of Afghan origin – like John Doe 1 – who have worked for the government. In 22 months, Canada has welcomed 32,745 people, or 80% less than the Ukrainian program.
You can turn it around any way you want, there is a huge gap between the two initiatives. In terms of numbers as well as manner.
While bureaucracy has been cut to the minimum to allow Ukrainians to come to Canada quickly, the process for Afghans is cumbersome, slow and full of pitfalls. I had a taste of it myself while trying to help (unsuccessfully) a former translator to come to Canada.
And yet, one can hardly pretend that the situation is not terrible in Afghanistan. Of course, there are no bombings or fighting like in Ukraine, but half of the population – the female one – has been erased from public life and put under house arrest. Millions of other people live in fear, with hunger in their stomachs. And all this following a decade-long Canadian military intervention.
How does Immigration Minister Sean Fraser justify this discrepancy? By saying that the two programs do not have the same objective. That the Afghans we welcome will start a new life here and receive permanent residence, while the Ukrainians have temporary status and will return to Ukraine as soon as they have the opportunity.
His firm says this analysis comes from discussions with stakeholders in the field.
However, this hypothesis seems difficult to prove, especially in the light of a survey carried out by the organization Operation Safe Haven for Ukrainians last October. According to this study of 1,483 Ukrainians who arrived in Canada between March and October 2022, the vast majority of respondents – 84% – intend to apply for permanent residence in Canada and 6% say they want to enter Ukraine as soon as it is safe. to do.
This is enough to call into question the premises of the decisions explaining the difference in treatment between Afghans and Ukrainians.
What are the Afghan-Canadian plaintiffs asking for in their lawsuit? That the Canadian government end discrimination by extending the Ukrainian visa program, dubbed the Canada-Ukraine Emergency Travel Authorization (CUATU), to all those fleeing danger.
We could speak of tens of millions of people.
The other option is for the government to sit down with the complainants and pay attention to their request, which does not seem unreasonable. John Doe 1’s lawyer, Nicolas Pope, says he hopes for a “negotiated agreement”.
That said, even if the case eventually settles out of court, the government should take the time to look at its huge gaps in generosity between Ukrainians and all other peoples who live in adversity. The contrast remains striking.