Roxham Road | Multicultural Meanderings

À quoi peut-on s’attendre au chemin Roxham?

2021/11/24 Leave a comment

Quebec advocate perspective. Will be interesting to see how fast and how far numbers climb:

Entre 2017 et 2019, 95 % des personnes ayant présenté une demande d’asile à la frontière terrestre canadienne l’ont fait au Québec, et pratiquement toutes au chemin Roxham, où l’on ne trouve aucun poste frontalier officiel. Près de 18 mois après l’avoir interdit en raison de la pandémie, le gouvernement fédéral permet, depuis dimanche dernier, aux personnes qui traversent la frontière entre les postes frontaliers de déposer une demande d’asile. À quoi peut-on s’attendre à la suite de cette réouverture ?
Pour répondre à cette question, il faut retourner aux années prépandémie. La transformation du chemin Roxham en point névralgique de cette frontière n’est pas une coïncidence : elle découle de plusieurs décennies de politiques migratoires qui visent à empêcher l’arrivée spontanée de demandeurs d’asile. Répondant à une anxiété liée au fonctionnement du système fédéral d’asile dans les années 1990, ces politiques ont pris une tournure antiterroriste à la suite des attentats du 11 septembre 2001. Cette année-là, le Canada et les États-Unis se sont mis d’accord sur la Déclaration pour une frontière intelligente, dont fait partie l’Entente sur les tiers pays sûrs (ETPS). Mise en place en 2004, l’ETPS permet de renvoyer la majorité des demandeurs d’asile qui se présentent à la frontière canado-américaine vers les États-Unis.
Cette entente est à l’origine de ce que l’on a appelé la « crise migratoire » du chemin Roxham. En effet, parmi les exceptions qu’elle prévoit, l’ETPS ne s’applique pas aux personnes qui traversent la frontière à un endroit autre qu’un point d’entrée. En raison de sa situation géographique et à la faveur de la conjoncture politique, le chemin Roxham s’est imposé en tant que principal point d’entrée non officiel au Canada. Si les premières arrivées se sont déroulées de manière chaotique, les autorités ont par la suite mis en place certains dispositifs permettant d’accueillir ces personnes de façon ordonnée. Néanmoins, cet arrangement temporaire a permis aux autorités canadiennes d’exercer une surveillance sur les arrivées irrégulières, de garder un certain contrôle sur ces personnes et, ultimement, d’examiner leurs demandes de façon à respecter les droits des demandeurs d’asile ainsi que la législation canadienne.
Durant les premières semaines de la pandémie, le Canada a presque entièrement fermé sa frontière terrestre aux demandeurs d’asile. Alors que le gouvernement a par la suite rétabli les quelques exceptions à l’ETPS, les personnes se présentant entre les points d’entrée officiels ne pouvaient toujours pas déposer leur demande, étant renvoyées aux États-Unis dans l’attente du moment où les autorités leur permettraient de venir le faire. Bien que l’Agence des services frontaliers du Canada ait commencé à contacter ces personnes en août dernier, cette fermeture fait en sorte que de nouveaux chemins plus reculés sont maintenant empruntés. Du côté américain, des organismes d’aide aux réfugiés déplorent les conditions difficiles dans lesquelles se retrouvent les personnes qui attendent de pouvoir déposer leur demande.
La levée de cette exception annoncée dimanche aura des conséquences au chemin Roxham et ailleurs le long de la frontière terrestre. Il s’agit d’un bon moment pour considérer l’abrogation de l’ETPS et ainsi permettre aux demandeurs d’asile de se présenter directement aux postes frontaliers. Sinon, les images de 2017 risquent de revenir à la une de nos journaux : des familles entières qui se présentent de façon irrégulière au chemin Roxham, leurs valises à la main, puisque cela constitue leur unique option pour demander le statut de réfugié au Canada. Ou, pire encore, des demandeurs d’asile qui, comme ce fut le cas en 2017, périssent dans les régions rurales enneigées des Prairies à la recherche d’un passage entre deux postes frontaliers. Ce jeu du chat et de la souris entre les autorités et les demandeurs d’asile ne sert finalement personne.

Source: https://www.ledevoir.com/opinion/idees/649125/demandeurs-d-asile-a-quoi-peut-on-s-attendre-au-chemin-roxham?utm_source=infolettre-2021-11-23&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=infolettre-quotidienne

Filed under Immigration, Refugees Tagged with asylum seekers, Quebec, Roxham Road

With COVID-19 clampdown, number of asylum seekers at Canada-U.S. border slows to a trickle

2020/04/08 Leave a comment

As expected. Full March numbers not out yet so these interim numbers highlight the impact from March 21:

Sweeping changes at Canada’s borders under emergency pandemic restrictions have slowed cross-border traffic to an unparalleled trickle, including people claiming persecution abroad.

Six asylum seekers were turned back at Canada’s border with the United States under recent COVID-19 restrictions, four of them irregular border crossers, from March 21 to April 2, according to data from Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).

March 21 was the day the highly unusual emergency order under the Quarantine Act prohibited entry into Canada by people claiming refugee protection.

Only one asylum seeker has been allowed to proceed into Canada under exemptions to the closed border rule, which could mean the person was an American citizen.

Of the four irregular crossers, which are sometimes referred to as illegal border crossers, two were stopped after crossing into Quebec and two into British Columbia.

The remaining two asylum seekers arrived from the United States at a border entry point in southern Ontario and were also turned back, CBSA said. The agency refused to say what country any of these people were seeking protection from.

“Failure to comply with a direct back order could result in the foreign national to become inadmissible to Canada,” said Jacqueline Callin, a spokeswoman for CBSA. “This regulation will be applied to all foreign nationals seeking to enter Canada if their entry is prohibited — regardless if they enter irregularly or at a designated land port of entry.

“Asylum claimants will be asked to provide basic identifying information and requested to return to make their asylum claim after the temporary prohibition has been lifted.”

That stands in sharp contrast to what is typical border activity.

CBSA would not provide the numbers of asylum claims for the same period last year. However, as a point of contrast, in all of March 2019, the RCMP made 1,001 interceptions of asylum seekers who did not cross at a formal border checkpoint: 967 in Quebec, 22 in B.C., and 13 in Manitoba.

That same month there were a total of 1,870 asylum claims made at formal border crossing points, which was itself one of the lowest monthly totals for the year.

There are far fewer new cases of refugee claimants at the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB).

The Refugee Protection Division of the IRB received 304 refugee protection claims nationally from March 21 and April 5, according to IRB data. While a specific comparison to the same period last year was not available, in 2019, the IRB had an overall average of 2,245 referrals in a two-week period.

This does not mean all 304 claimants crossed the border since the COVID-19 travel restrictions, however. There may be delays between a claimant’s arrival in Canada and a referral to the IRB, said Anna Pape, a spokeswoman for the IRB.

The steep drop in asylum seekers in Canada mirrors the unparalleled drop in all border traffic under COVID-19.

From March 23 to March 29, there were almost 82 per cent fewer land crossings into Canada compared with the same period last year, and an almost 85 per cent drop in people arriving by air.

On March 16, in an abrupt about-face, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said foreign travellers were prevented from entering Canada, except for U.S. citizens, to curtail the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Despite that, the next day, Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair said irregular border crossers would undergo medical screening but still be allowed to proceed for assessment of their immigration claims in Canada.

The following day, borders were clamped down even tighter with the Canada-U.S. border closed to all non-essential travel, regardless of citizenship.

On March 20, in a further change, the government announced that asylum seekers will also be rejected at the border for the time being.

All travellers arriving in Canada — including Canadian citizens — are being met with increased intervention and screening in light of COVID-19.

Temperatures, however, are not taken by CBSA at borders or airports.

During a similar but less severe pandemic, the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003, temperature testing was found to be an ineffective control, CBSA said. During SARS, 2.3 million travellers had temperatures taken at Canada’s airports.

“Despite this intensive screening effort, no cases of SARS were detected using these methods,” said Callin.

Source: With COVID-19 clampdown, number of asylum seekers at Canada-U.S. border slows to a trickle

Filed under Immigration Tagged with asylum seekers, COVID-19, Roxham Road

Le chemin Roxham suscite l’inquiétude

2020/03/20 Leave a comment

Comments from local residents:

Alors que la COVID-19 se propage et que la fermeture de la frontière canado-américaine se concrétise, plusieurs s’inquiètent du chemin Roxham, où des dizaines de personnes en provenance des États-Unis se rendent au Canada de façon irrégulière.

Mercredi en avant-midi, c’était le calme plat à Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle sur le chemin Roxham. On estime qu’entre 60 et 80 migrants y passent chaque jour pour traverser la frontière entre le Canada et les États-Unis. Selon Ottawa, les chiffres datant de mars 2020 parlent plutôt de 49 passages par jour.

Ces demandeurs d’asile traversent la frontière de façon irrégulière, mais pas nécessairement illégale.

Une poignée d’agents de la Sûreté du Québec (SQ) et de la Gendarmerie royale canadienne (GRC) sont visibles. Ce lieu de passage est surveillé par les autorités policières en tout temps. Deux résidents d’une municipalité environnante se sont rendus sur place pour manifester leur mécontentement.

Alors que les frontières entre le Canada et les États-Unis se ferment, le chemin Roxham demeure, déplorent-ils. La plupart de ceux qui y passent ont transité par les États-Unis dans les dernières semaines.

« La GRC fait bien son travail », pense Robert Duteau, maire de Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle. Il ne semblait pas s’inquiéter outre mesure de cette situation. « Les personnes qui transitent des États-Unis sont là quelques jours, dans une roulotte et ensuite se dirigent à Montréal. Les agents de la GRC vont demander toutes les informations utiles. Ils les questionnent un par un et ceux qui entrent devront s’isoler. »

Pour sa part, Sylvie Gobeil se dit « enragée » que le chemin Roxham ne soit pas complètement fermé en temps de pandémie. « C’est pas intelligent qu’on laisse rentrer des illégaux des États-Unis. Ces gens-là vont arriver, engorger notre système de santé », plaide d’un ton ferme la résidente de Noyan, une municipalité située de l’autre côté de la rivière Richelieu.

« On est tous en danger en temps de pandémie, il faut protéger ton pays en premier. On paye pour eux et cet endroit est une vraie passoire », poursuit André Bernier, également résidant de Noyan.

Les deux citoyens doutent que les mesures d’isolement seront mises en place pour ceux qui traversent la frontière par le passage.

« Il n’est pas acceptable que des demandeurs d’asile rentrent au pays par le chemin Roxham sans être par la suite placés en isolement », a par ailleurs dit François Legault en point de presse mercredi après-midi. Il ajoute avoir eu des discussions avec le gouvernement fédéral à ce sujet.
Invité à faire le point sur le chemin Roxham, Justin Trudeau s’est montré rassurant. « […] Je peux vous rassurer que toutes les mesures sont prises pour assurer que c’est tout à fait contrôlé et que tout le monde qui traverse par là serait en quarantaine pendant […] 14 jours », a-t-il expliqué.

Un changement de procédure est maintenant prévu afin de minimiser au maximum la propagation du virus. Les agents de la GRC vont arrêter les migrants qui traversent et auront comme tâche de détecter les potentiels symptômes. Qu’ils présentent des symptômes ou non, ils seront envoyés à l’Agence des services frontaliers et seront isolés.

Source: Le chemin Roxham suscite l’inquiétude

Asylum seekers crossing by foot into Canada from the U.S. are being screened for COVID-19 and moved to a shelter to accommodate the requirement that all incoming travellers to Canada self-isolate for 14 days, the federal public safety minister said Tuesday.

Efforts to ensure border crossers follow those guidelines come as the federal government ramps up restrictions on entry into Canada in a bid to cut off new sources of infection.

Starting Wednesday, most international air travel will be routed to four airports and only Canadians, permanent residents, Americans and a few other groups of people will be allowed into the country.

Around 1,000 people a month have been entering Canada for nearly three years between formal border crossings in order to request refugee status here, crossing over farmers’ fields or well-trod paths to get around the Safe Third Country Agreement with the U.S. The deal doesn’t allow people to request asylum at official land border points, but people can lodge claims once inside the country.

Public Safety Minister Bill Blair said Tuesday that the asylum seekers are being screened for COVID-19 symptoms, but rather than following the normal protocol of referring them to temporary shelter — most often in Montreal, as the majority are arriving in Quebec — alternative accommodation is being arranged to account for the voluntary isolation period.

Details on that were not immediately available.

“We are doing this because we believe it is necessary and in the best interest of keeping all Canadians healthy and safe,” he said.

Conservative immigration critic Peter Kent said it made no sense to allow the asylum seekers to continue to enter the country.

“This is the perfect time to close the gaping Safe Third Country loophole and apply (the) same restrictions at irregular crossings as at formal border posts,” Kent said on Twitter.

The Bloc Quebecois, meanwhile, renewed its call for the Liberal government to shut down informal entry points, such as the Roxham Road crossing between New York and Quebec, to slow the rate of infection.

The decision by the federal government to effectively close the Canadian border is expected to have major implications for the immigration system, which had hoped to welcome upwards of 340,000 new permanent residents this year, including 31,700 refugees.

But, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration announced Tuesday they’re temporarily suspending their resettlement programs going forward, given the international disruption to travel.

They said they are hoping people who have already cleared all the formalities will be able to arrive and that countries will at least keep processing applications for when travel bans lift.

“As resettlement remains a life-saving tool for many refugees, UNHCR and IOM are appealing to States, and working in close co-ordination with them, to ensure that movements can continue for the most critical emergency cases wherever possible,” the organizations said in a statement.

The flow of asylum seekers is a minuscule fraction of the daily traffic between Canada and the U.S.

Statistics suggest, for example, that in December 2019 alone, 400,000 commercial vehicles made the trip across the border.

That traffic is keeping essential goods and services moving into both countries, and it’s for that reason the Liberal government says it is currently exempting Americans from a ban on travel into Canada.

But Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said Tuesday that the decision is continually under review, and reiterated that non-essential cross-border traffic should be cancelled.

Health Minister Patty Hajdu, whose own Ontario riding is near the U.S. border, said Canadians need to think about what essential really means, especially in border towns where quick jaunts into the U.S. are a way of life.

“When we say non-essential travel, that means including crossing the border to buy cigarettes or alcohol, to pick up packages that are delivered to the United States, to do grocery shopping in the United States because the prices may or may not be lower, or you need to find specific items that are not available in Canada,” she said.

“These would be considered non-essential trips.”

Source: Coronavirus travel limits have not stopped asylum-seekers walking into Canada at Roxham Road

Filed under Immigration Tagged with asylum seekers, COVID-19, Roxham Road

Refugees must spend 14 days in self-isolation away from usual shelters: Blair

2020/03/19 Leave a comment

Will be interesting to see how this works in practice and the overall effects on the numbers:

Refugees arriving to Canada amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic must now spend 14 days in self-isolation away from the usual shelters, Canada’s public safety minister announced on Tuesday.

The new refugees must also be screened for “evidence of (COVID-19) symptoms and questioned” about their travel history, Bill Blair said during the federal government’s most recent update on the measures being employed to stall the spread of the virus.

When someone enters Canada and claims protection through Canada’s refugee system (whether it be as a United Nations- or privately-sponsored refugee, or as asylum claimant), they are first screened by Canada’s border agency. Anyone determined by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to have had a criminal history or who may pose a threat to Canada are not allowed in the country. Blair said this screening typically takes 24 hours.

After passing an initial screening, Blair said refugees will be moved to “appropriate shelter” for their two-week isolation, separate from usual temporary housings in places like Montreal, which has become a popular settlement location partly owing to its proximity to Roxham Road, an unauthorized border crossing in southern Quebec.

“We are doing this because we believe it is necessary and in the best interest of keeping all Canadians healthy and safe,” Blair said.

The government reports there were 64,045 asylum claims made in Canada in 2019.According to Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) statistics,there were 42,491 refugee protection claims made in Canada last year. By the end of 2019, the government was still faced with 87,270 pending claims.

Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the IRB have had to make suspensions to their services amidst the COVID-19 pandemic as well. IRCC is suspending all in-person appointments until at least April 13, while IRB is postponing its in-person hearings and mediations until at least April 5.

These new rules for incoming refugees come as the federal government takes steps to restrict access to Canada, much like other countries around the globe have done, in an attempt to thwart the spread of COVID-19.

On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that most non-residents would be banned from entering Canada. Canadian citizens, permanent residents and their immediate families, as well as American citizens, diplomats and aircrews, as well as those entering the country for the purpose of trade or commerce, are exempted from the ban.

The CBSA is asking all travellers who are still able to return to Canada to isolate themselves for 14 days once they enter the country. If within that time someone suffers from symptoms of COVID-19 (such as a fever, cough, or difficulty breathing), they’re asked to reach out to health authorities to advise them of their travels.

Canada’s deputy chief public health officer Dr. Howard Njoo said on Monday that with the data available at that time that almost nine-in-10 cases (87 per cent), had been related to travel outside of the country.

According to Canada’s chief public health officer Theresa Tam, there have now been 180,000 cases of COVID-19 identified across 160 countries worldwide. As of midday on Tuesday, 37,ooo people in Canada had been tested for the coronavirus, with more than 440 cases being reported as positive. Five Canadians had died from COVID-19 by Tuesday, with Ontario reporting its first death the morning after British Columbia declared three patients of the illness inside its borders had succumbed to the disease.

Source: Refugees must spend 14 days in self-isolation away from usual shelters: Blair

Filed under Immigration Tagged with asylum seekers, Minister Blair, Roxham Road

Multicultural Meanderings

À quoi peut-on s’attendre au chemin Roxham?

With COVID-19 clampdown, number of asylum seekers at Canada-U.S. border slows to a trickle

Le chemin Roxham suscite l’inquiétude

Refugees must spend 14 days in self-isolation away from usual shelters: Blair

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