Posted on 03/30/2006 7:56:18 AM PST by aCDNinUSA
Thousands are sent back to Portugal
BETWEEN 15,000 and 22,000 Portuguese illegal immigrants could be deported from Canada. An unprecedented operation has started to expatriate all the illegal immigrants working in the country.
In February, the Ambassador to the country, João Silveira de Carvalho, received an official communication from the Immigration Ministry saying that all Portuguese working in Canada without a permit would be ordered to return immediately to their country.
The first Portuguese families have been put on aeroplanes and forced to leave. Some of the families had been living in Canada for several years and many had already bought houses there. They were given only a few days notice to make preparations, pack their bags, and get rid of possessions they couldn't take on the flight to Lisbon. A large number of the group being deported went to Canada to meet the demands of a booming construction industry, particularly in Toronto. Estimates state that about 75 per cent of the workers are in the country illegally.
"If you have bought a new home or a new condo, you know that the waiting times for getting a place just keep on getting longer and longer," Pedro Barata of the Portuguese National Congress said. "I think that the more we deport people who are needed in the construction industry, the longer those waits are going to be."
Some estimates say that 15,000 people are working illegally in Ontario's construction and hospitality industries, and the Canada-wide figure is 300,000. Immigration sources said there will not be an amnesty. The federal agency said they have a legal duty to remove people who have come to the country without following the proper procedures.
Many in the group deported say they will try to return to Canada and resume the lives they have built. Portuguese Foreign Minister, Diogo Freitas do Amaral, has announced that he will travel to Canada this week for discussions with the Ottawa authorities.
In a statement, Freitas do Amaral said he had decided to travel to Canada to discuss the sudden change in policy by the authorities in relation to Portuguese nationals living and working there without visas. The Portuguese authorities announced earlier that a reception centre is being set up at Lisbon Airport to give support to nationals arriving from Canada.
My letter will outline how disappointed I am with the legal system for immigration in Canada. I'm concerned that illegal residents of Canada avoid necessary medical help out of fear of reprisal. Our policy and level of admittance for political refugees is also dangerous and irresponsible. Canada, like France, is facing a significant problem with an aging population and a flow of young workers to the United States.
I'll point out that I feel all residents should contribute to any social services they use. I'm not condoning their illegal residency here. I just feel that instead of returning them to their country, efforts could be made with that time and money to intergrate them legally. They are a necessary part of the economy now, regardless of their status.
At Christmas I heard of two longtime residents being expelled from a small community that valued them highly. The reason? The business they opened didn't turn a profit for four years. This is common for most businesses.
Their nationality? American. I signed a petition that day and I'd sign one today if it could rationalize this process.
I don't have problems with a nation deporting illegal aliens, but why is Canada starting with Portuguese rather than say . . . Arabs? I don't know of any Portuguese that flew airliners into buildings or strapped on suicide bombs.
What would be your rationale for thinking that they should avail themselves of free health care into which they have not paid?
"BETWEEN 15,000 and 22,000 Portuguese illegal immigrants could be deported from Canada. An unprecedented operation has started to expatriate all the illegal immigrants working in the country."
You have my blessing, Canada. NO country needs lawbreakers, in any way, shape, or form...
I don't support their using a system for which they haven't paid. I do support making assimilation and legalization of immigrants an easier and more streamlined process. People arriving illegally from other countries for whatever reason often need medical attention urgently. If we ignore them until they have passed all the needless bureaucratic hurdles, some might die. Any person dying due to an otiose system is too many, in my opinion.
Send our illegals to Canada.
Well gee, then maybe they should go home so they don't have that problem.
Don't let them in, and there won't be that problem.
Yes, that is exactly what you are proposing. They have not paid into it, yet you advocate them using it.
I'm sorry if I wasn't clear. My argument amounts to this: 1) People arriving here illegally often need urgent medical attention 2) These same people are needed by Canada in an era of an aging population and largely migrant young workforce 3) The money spent on deporting these people could be spent on making them legal through outreach programs, solving both the problems of the country and the immigrants at the same time.
I don't support anyone abusing our health care system for free. In fact, Ontario had to put pictures on the health care cards to prevent Americans from gaming the system. I support that fully.
I already addressed your first point.
As to your second, I agree that immigrants are needed. So why not stick to the legal method of bringing in as many as you want? Swell those numbers if they are needed. These folks will also need medical care; the legals should be the ones who get it IMO.
They are without a doubt the most friendly and efficacious of people. I really must remember to protest this with a letter to my MP.
That is nice!!!
But if they are illegal, are the not criminals???
I agree. I was stationed in the Azores, twice (second time by choice).
The nicest people I have ever met, they love Americans. I would imagine Canadians, too.
That's because we're slowly but surely getting sick of these people taking advantage of our good will.
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