Ottawa's sweeping border bill ‘an attack' on asylum seekers' rights, says Amnesty International Canada

CTV News

2 days ago

RCMP officers stop asylum seekers as they enter Canada via Roxham Road on the Canada-U.S. border in Hemmingford, Que., on March 25, 2023. (Graham Hughes / The Canadian Press)
The federal government's proposed Bill C-2 is 'an attack' on refugees' right to seek asylum, Amnesty International Canada says.
The human rights organization said in a press release Thursday that the bill, if passed, would make it 'virtually impossible' for the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) to review refugee claims from most people entering Canada via the United States.
Moreover, Amnesty International Canada says the bill would prevent people who have been in Canada for more than a year from seeking refugee status. People facing harm, including persecution and torture, in their countries could be 'unfairly denied' refugee protection by Canada, it added.
Ketty Nivyabandi, secretary general of Amnesty International Canada's English-speaking section, said seeking asylum is a human right.
'With Bill C-2, the Canadian government threatens to chip away at that right, making it harder for people seeking safety and freedom to file an asylum claim and have it assessed fairly,' Nivyabandi said in a statement Thursday. 'This attack on the right to seek asylum will severely diminish Canada's international standing when it comes to protecting human rights.'
Referring to the measures affecting immigrants and asylum seekers, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said in a press release Tuesday that Bill C-2, or the Strong Borders Act, would address what it called growing migration pressures by making the immigration and asylum systems stronger, efficient and more flexible.
A separate news release Tuesday from Public Safety Canada said the changes will improve the 'integrity and fairness of our immigration system while protecting Canadians' privacy and Charter rights.' The federal government says it will also work with American border and law enforcement agencies to strengthen the border and combat organized crime.
According to a background document, the bill includes ineligibility rules. People who make asylum claims more than one year after first arriving in Canada after June 24, 2020, would not be referred to the IRB. Asylum claimants who enter Canada from the United States along the land border and make a claim after 14 days would also not be referred to the IRB.