This Toronto Sun article about Tamils doesn’t really surprise me a whole lot. The article cites a government survey which reveals that most successful Tamil refugee claimants return to Sri Lanka after receiving their papers.
To become accepted for political asylum in Canada, a person must prove that they face torture, persecution or even death in the country they are fleeing from. According to Martin Collacott, former High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, 76 percent of Tamil refugee claimants are accepted in Canada—an acceptance rate 38 times higher than in Great Britain.
Yet over 70 percent of successful Tamil refugee claimants surveyed eventually went back to Sri Lanka for a “vacation”, business, or to arrange the sponsorship of other family members.
As the article notes, it’s common knowledge that asylum seekers often return to their home lands after receiving Canadian papers. It certainly should come as no surprise that Tamils do what every other ethnic group does as well.
The key for refugees is to get Canadian papers granting permanent residency. Or better yet, Canadian citizenship, which provides claimants with a degree of protection if they return home. Canadians who run afoul of laws in foreign countries are entitled to consular services and other privileges.
That’s why it is important to remember that asylum seekers in Canada aren’t necessarily looking for a new place to live, but a place to regroup if things go awry in their own country. We saw this happen during the 2006 Lebanese-Israeli conflict. We saw it during the Haitian earthquake. It happens all the time.
One of my first rock climbing partners was an amicable fellow from Bogota, Colombia. He was a civil engineer in his country and had received the odd threat from FARC, a notorious paramilitary organization well-versed in kidnapping, bombing, and murder.
Through his company, he obtained a travel visa to the United States where he went for a rock climbing vacation. He eventually visited Buffalo, where he met a fellow Colombian girl. On something of a whim, they decided to cross the border together into Canada.
This was before the enactment of the Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement which seeks to limit the number of refugees flowing across both sides of the border to make a claim. Logically speaking, my friend could have sought asylum in the United States, where presumably he was already safe from persecution, torture or death at the hands of FARC.
But he didn’t. He and his new girlfriend moved to Toronto and applied for asylum in Canada. After a two year wait, they were granted permanent residency. At the time I knew of another Colombian who had been waiting four years only to have his claim rejected. This latter individual was, in my mind, a much more suitable candidate for asylum, since he spoke English flawlessly, had a good job, and was already well integrated into Canada society.
Shortly after receiving his papers, my Colombian climbing partner returned to his homeland for a two-month visit and climbing trip. For him Canada was a safer place to live but it was by no means his salvation. There’s no question that his life was not in immediate peril in Colombia. He was no more likely to be kidnapped or murdered by FARC than any other resident of Colombia.
Not long after my friend won his bid to stay in Canada but after he had returned from his Colombian vacation, he moved to British Columbia where he would find new opportunities for rock climbing. This, he told me in 2002 before his claim was accepted, had been his ultimate goal. While being free from a vague threat of violence was a bonus, he was really in Canada for the rock climbing.
It is even less surprising that Tamils would return to Sri Lanka after being granted asylum, since they didn’t move to Canada to find a better selection of rock climbs. They came here for a safe haven to fall back on while they continue to be active in the pursuit of a Tamil homeland.
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tro-kilinochchi/2818333185/
