Posted at 5:00 a.m.
Canada has welcomed more immigrants from Hong Kong in the wake of the passage of the national security law in 2020, in particular thanks to a migration policy excluding Quebec. On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the return to China of the former British colony, The Press spoke to a newcomer about his reasons for leaving and the challenges he faced.
Most immigrants to Canada from Hong Kong settle in Ontario or British Columbia, but Benny Ho and his family chose Quebec. “Our original plan was to go to Toronto, Ontario, but my sister lives in Montreal, so she could offer us a lot of support,” says Mr. Ho, 55, who moved to Brossard with his wife. wife and daughter last spring.
They are among the approximately 790 immigrants from Hong Kong who arrived in Canada between January and March 2022. After a decrease from 1,540 immigrants in 2019 to 1,045 in 2020, no less than 2,295 Hong Kongers took up residence in the country in 2021, d ‘according to federal government data – of which only 70 are in Quebec.
New challenges here
Mr. Ho was a social worker in Hong Kong, but the language barrier prevents him from practicing this profession here, for now. “I have to learn a bit of French first. I’m going to take a course in July,” he said. In the meantime, the father of the family works as a kitchen assistant in a restaurant. “I have to make a living,” he sighs.
Canada has facilitated the arrival of immigrants from Hong Kong in 2021 through open work permits for new graduates and two new pathways to permanent residence created in response to the passage of the national security.
These new pathways to permanent residence, however, exclude Quebec, which means that Mr. Ho and his family will have to leave the province to obtain this status.
“It’s a very difficult thing for us because we have parents here, we started to settle here”, he regrets. “My daughter wants to learn French, but she will have to leave with us in maybe a year or two if we want to apply for permanent residency. »
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
Benny Ho and his daughter
Asked about the reasons why Quebec is excluded, the Ministry of Immigration, Francisation and Integration explains that “being solely responsible for the selection of foreign nationals destined for its territory in the category of economic immigration, Quebec does not participate in this [politique] because of the small number of people targeted and the fact that they already have pathways to permanent immigration to Quebec, in particular the Quebec Experience Program and the Regular Skilled Worker Program”.
“Not like Hong Kong before”
It was primarily because of “political instability” that Mr. Ho left the territory. “Hong Kong changed a lot after 1997, and in recent years the government has had much more control over its people,” he said. “It’s not like Hong Kong before, we don’t have freedom of speech, we don’t have universal suffrage, we don’t have the right to choose our government. »
1er July 1997, the former colony became a semi-autonomous region based on the principle of “one country, two systems”. But mainland China has since tightened its grip on the territory by flouting fundamental rights hitherto recognized. This crackdown culminated in the passage on June 30, 2020, of a national security law aimed at silencing dissidents.
By coming to settle here, Mr. Ho and his wife also wanted to provide a better education for their daughter. “The education system in Hong Kong has changed a lot,” he says. The Chinese government tries to impose a lot of rules and I’m afraid there is some kind of brainwashing. »
According to figures published in August 2021, Hong Kong had then seen its population decrease by 1.2% in one year to 7.3 million inhabitants, the largest decline since the establishment of such data in 1961.
For the government, these departures are “normal”, with outgoing leader Carrie Lam accusing other countries of “disguising their search for talent” under a political pretext. His successor John Lee warned that emigrants would miss out on future prospects by leaving.
With Agence France-Presse