On this Canadian Refugee Rights Day, our three organizations note with enthusiasm and hope the openness of the Quebec and Canadian governments to welcoming people fleeing Ukraine. The two levels of government even assured that there was no limit to the number that could be accommodated. Are we therefore entering a new era of immigration management in Quebec?
In the fall of 2020, Canada was trying to set up a permanent residence program for asylum seekers who had worked in essential services during the pandemic. We then hit a wall because Quebec wanted the most restrictive eligibility criteria possible.
At that time, as during the reform of the Quebec experience program (PEQ) or when groups like ours called for greater openness in Quebec, Premier François Legault repeated that such an openness was impossible to because of “Quebec’s integration capabilities”.
But when Russia invaded Ukraine, there was what appears to be a major shift in immigration issues from the Quebec government. Suddenly, concerns about the ability to integrate people who have never set foot here have diminished.
“We anticipate that we will be able to respect our capacity for reception, integration and francization. If it goes beyond this capacity, we will have to assess whether we add additional resources and budgets,” even declared Jean Boulet, Minister of Immigration.
Appropriate policies
What a good surprise to see the Quebec government understand that it has control over this famous “accommodation capacity”, and that this should not be the only criterion determining a person’s right to find their place here.
The reactions of support for the Ukrainian people prove that there is strong support from Quebec society for Quebec to remain a land of choice for people fleeing persecution. Politicians just have to follow.
Section 22.4 of Bill 96, for example, will soon require all public service agents to communicate only in French with immigrants six months after their arrival. This article shows a lack of consideration for the traumas and difficulties these people may have experienced. There is still time to backtrack and listen to the openness of Quebecers on this subject before the bill is passed in the Blue Room.
At the dawn of a sixth wave of COVID-19, we also call on the governments of Quebec and Canada to agree to give permanent status to all people in the asylum application process who have gone through the crisis with we.
While the spotlight is on Ukraine, thousands of people continue to wait their turn, sometimes for years, in refugee camps around the world. These people only dream of being able to make a living in a safe place where they can settle. Quebec could seize the opportunity to do its part in terms of hospitality with the same benevolence that it shows for the Ukrainian people, remembering that above all, they are brothers, sisters, friends, humans.
The Ukrainian crisis has awakened a surge of solidarity in Quebec; let’s not make the mistake of seeing this solidarity being limited to one people, one crisis, one moment. Our humanity is at stake.