scholarly journals “They didn’t treat me as a Gypsy”: Romani Refugees in Toronto

Refuge ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 54-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Levine-Rasky
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Hate Crime ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Refugee Claimants ◽  
Determination System ◽  
Meaning Of Home

With organized hate crime and institutionalized discrimination, thousands of European Roma have fled to Canada, where they claim refugee status. Their arrival coincided with far-ranging reforms to the refugee determination system in 2012–13 in addition to some actions aimed specifically at the Roma. Against this backdrop, former and current Romani refugee claimants substantiate the experience of migration and settlement, beginning with the first moments after arrival, to the tasks of finding housing and work. Agency and resilience are evinced, despite the government’s multiple instruments used against asylum-seekers. Romani refugees’ lives show how, for transnational groups, belongingness is always contested and the meaning of home is always nuanced.

scholarly journals You’re not gay enough: the experiences and challenges of LGBTQ refugees during the asylum determination process in Toronto

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison T. E. Holder
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Legal Counsel ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
Determination Process ◽  
Refugee Claimants ◽  
The World ◽  
Determination System ◽  
Do So

From much of the previous literature, it has been assumed that the IRB refugee determination system is inherently unfair to LGBTQ claimants, and that it demands queer refugees disclose a great deal of intimate personal information to meet heteronormative markers of gayness. Although these experiences still occur for queer asylum seekers today, the participants in this research pointed towards a shift in the IRB claim process. Overall, the participants recognized that the system is made and maintained by those who view the world through a heteronormative lens. Ultimately, the research pointed towards the fact that claimants have adapted to meet the expectations of the IRB’s LGBTQ refugee determination system. Through the sharing of information amongst fellow claimants, service providers, and legal counsel, queer refugees have become outstanding social actors who have learned how to perform their ‘queerness’ to gain a positive IRB result that ensures their protection from their countries of origin. It is important to note that this does not mean that anyone who wishes to seek asylum in Canada can do so under the guise of LGBTQ identities. Instead, this category of refugees has always been and will remain valid, and claimants have learned to perform the aspects of their identity which meet the stereotypical demands of the IRB and other heteronormative Canadian systems. Key words: LGBTQ, LGBTQ refugees, LGBTQ asylum-seekers, refugee claimants, IRB, Canada, Toronto, immigration, SOGIE, social actors, heteronormative, waiting

scholarly journals Reforming the Canadian Refugee Determination System

Refuge ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 110-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Collacott
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Supreme Court Of Canada ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Electoral Support ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Effective Manner ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
Determination System ◽  
Do So

If Canadian refugee policy is to serve interests of Canadians as well as those of genuine refugees in an effective manner, far more radical changes will be needed than have been attempted to date. They must include the introduction of robust safe third country designations, a review of the 1985 Singh decision of the Supreme Court of Canada, and possible withdrawal by Canada of its accession to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention. Other measures should also be considered such as placing an annual limit on the intake of refugees from overseas combined with that of successful incountry asylum seekers as well as establishing provision for temporary refugee status in Canada in addition to permanent resettlement. Measures should be taken to return Canada to its role primarily as a resettlement country for refugees selected abroad and not one that accommodates large numbers of asylum seekers making claims on our territory. With strong public backing for major changes, political parties that oppose such reforms will do so at the risk of losing electoral support.

scholarly journals The “Bogus” Refugee: Roma Asylum Claimants and Discourses of Fraud in Canada’s Bill C-31

Refuge ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Molnar Diop
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
The State ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Canadian Law ◽  
Refugee Claimants ◽  
Government Of Canada ◽  
State Interventions

The passage of Bill C-31 into Canadian law in June 2012 is part of a discourse created around refugees by the current Government of Canada. Refugees are divided into “good and proper” refugees who live in camps abroad, and the “ fraudulent and bogus” refugees who claim asylum at the Canadian border. The new act, Bill C-31 or Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act, is analyzed with respect to changes that will result in the systematic exclusion of certain groups of asylum seekers from Canada, based on these discourses of “bogus” and “fraud,” even though these groups may include genuine refugees. Drawing on the case of Czech Roma refugee claimants who come to Canada from Europe, this article shows how the Roma come to stand for the perfect “bogus” refugee — a person who wants to cheat the benevolent Canadian system without having grounds for a successful refugee status application. A critical look at the legislation provides new insights into the relations between governmentality and the regimes of citizenship, with the state performing its power in increasingly spectacular ways. Refugees act as the abject Other that legitimizes, legalizes, and reaffirms such state interventions.

scholarly journals You’re not gay enough: the experiences and challenges of LGBTQ refugees during the asylum determination process in Toronto

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison T. E. Holder
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Legal Counsel ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
Determination Process ◽  
Refugee Claimants ◽  
The World ◽  
Determination System ◽  
Do So

From much of the previous literature, it has been assumed that the IRB refugee determination system is inherently unfair to LGBTQ claimants, and that it demands queer refugees disclose a great deal of intimate personal information to meet heteronormative markers of gayness. Although these experiences still occur for queer asylum seekers today, the participants in this research pointed towards a shift in the IRB claim process. Overall, the participants recognized that the system is made and maintained by those who view the world through a heteronormative lens. Ultimately, the research pointed towards the fact that claimants have adapted to meet the expectations of the IRB’s LGBTQ refugee determination system. Through the sharing of information amongst fellow claimants, service providers, and legal counsel, queer refugees have become outstanding social actors who have learned how to perform their ‘queerness’ to gain a positive IRB result that ensures their protection from their countries of origin. It is important to note that this does not mean that anyone who wishes to seek asylum in Canada can do so under the guise of LGBTQ identities. Instead, this category of refugees has always been and will remain valid, and claimants have learned to perform the aspects of their identity which meet the stereotypical demands of the IRB and other heteronormative Canadian systems. Key words: LGBTQ, LGBTQ refugees, LGBTQ asylum-seekers, refugee claimants, IRB, Canada, Toronto, immigration, SOGIE, social actors, heteronormative, waiting

scholarly journals Inconsistencies in repeated refugee status decisions

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Pärnamets ◽  
Alexander Tagesson ◽  
Annika Wallin
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Civil Servant ◽  
Affective Responses ◽  
Significant Decline ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Seeking Safety ◽  
Active Regulation ◽  
Governmental Intervention ◽  
Emotional Demands ◽  
Over Time

Consistency in civil servant decisions is paramount to upholding judicial equality for citizens and individuals seeking safety through governmental intervention. We investigated refugee status decisions made by a sample of civil servants at the Swedish Migration Agency. We hypothesized, based on the emotional demands such decisions bring with them, that participants would exhibit a compassion fade effect such that refugee status was less likely to be granted over time. To test this, we administered a questionnaire containing brief presentations of asylum seekers and asked participants to judge how likely they would be to give refugee status to the person. Crucially the first, middle and final case presented were matched on decision relevant characteristics. Consistent with our hypothesis we saw a significant decline in ratings. These effects were accentuated by the amount of time a participant had worked at the agency, consistent with depletion of affective resources, and attenuated in workers with greater responsibility and additional training. We conclude that active regulation of empathic and affective responses to asylum seekers may play a role in determining the outcome in refugee status decisions.

scholarly journals The Psycho-Social Conditions of Asylum-Seekers from Darfur in Israel

Refuge ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 25-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vered Slonim-Nevo ◽  
Shirley Regev ◽  
Yiftach Millo
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Functioning ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Standardized Measures ◽  
Human Needs ◽  
Migration Trauma ◽  
Dsm Iv ◽  
Refugees And Asylum Seekers ◽  
State Of Israel

ObjectiveThe study appraises the prevalence of pre-migration trauma exposure, the ability to secure basic living needs, and psychological functioning among Darfuri asylumseekers and refugees living in Israel. MethodThe sample included 340 adults from Darfur. Standardized measures assessing socio-psychological functioning were utilized. Results The participants demonstrated high rates of pre-migration exposure to traumatic experiences. Thirty per cent of the participants met DSM–IV criteria PTSD, with a higher proportion for women than for men. Post-migration stressors were mentioned by the majority of the participants. ConclusionsThe State of Israel should recognize past atrocities and traumas of Darfuris who arrived in Israel. Such recognition should be offered as acceptance of their rightful access to refugee status determination. Moreover, the State of Israel needs to modify government policies and legalization facilities so that Darfuri refugees and asylum-seekers will have access to basic human needs and support services.

Protecting Vulnerable Refugees: Procedural Fairness in the Australian Fast Track Regime

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily McDonald ◽  
Maria O'Sullivan
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Fast Track ◽  
Due Process ◽  
Procedural Fairness ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Efficiency Measures ◽  
Application Procedure ◽  
Visa Application ◽  
High Standards

Refugee Status Determination is a powerful example of the way in which vulnerability and the law interact. This article examines this interaction by analysing a case study: the special protection visa application procedure in place for certain asylum seekers in Australia (the ‘Fast Track Assessment’ process) and the implications of this for procedural fairness. We conclude that the current legislative framework for the Fast Track Assessment process operates to exacerbate the circumstances of vulnerability of asylum seekers. Efficiency measures are an important way of avoiding delays in decision-making. However it also increases the propensity of such measures to lead to serious legal errors. Considering the serious consequences of an improperly made decision in this context, we argue that high standards of procedural fairness and an oral hearing are required. The article also demonstrates that a central purpose of due process should be to mitigate (rather than exacerbate) circumstances of vulnerability or marginalisation.

Canadian Exclusion Jurisprudence post-Febles

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Molly Joeck
Keyword(s):  
Supreme Court ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Refugee Protection ◽  
Refugee Law ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
The Status ◽  
International Refugee Law

Abstract This article examines the state of Canadian refugee law since the decision of the Supreme Court in Febles v Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) [2014] 3 SCR 431. Drawing upon an analysis of a set of decisions of the Immigration and Refugee Board, the administrative tribunal tasked with refugee status determination in Canada, the article seeks to determine whether administrative decision makers are heeding the guidance of Febles when excluding asylum seekers from refugee protection on the basis of serious criminality pursuant to article 1F(b) of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. In doing so, it examines the controversy around article 1F(b) since its inception across various jurisdictions and amongst academic commentators, situating Febles within that controversy in order to demonstrate that the Supreme Court’s reluctance to clearly set out the purpose underlying article 1F(b) is in step with a longstanding tendency to understand the provision as serving a gatekeeping function, that prevents criminalized non-citizens from obtaining membership in our society. It argues that by omitting to set out a clear and principled standard by which asylum seekers can be excluded from refugee protection pursuant to article 1F(b), the Supreme Court failed to live up to a thick understanding of the rule of law. It concludes by calling for a reassertion of the rule of law into exclusion decision making, both nationally and internationally, in order to ensure that the legitimacy of the international refugee law regime is maintained.

Unintended asylum seekers: Bangladeshi probashi from Libya to Italy

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-34
Author(s):  
Nicoletta Del Franco
Keyword(s):  
Asylum Seekers ◽  
Political Regime ◽  
Refugee Status ◽  
Migration Flow ◽  
Uncertain Environment ◽  
Reception System ◽  
Bangladeshi Migrants

This paper focuses on Bangladeshi migrants, who have recently reached Italy from Libya. It discusses the results of fieldwork conducted between 2017 and 2018 with Bangladeshi asylum seekers living in the Parma area who are, or havebeen, hosted in emergency reception centers called CAS (Centri di Accoglienza Straordinaria). The aim of this paper isto explore the characteristics of this recent migration flow and to examine how migrants navigate the country’s formalreception system, adapting to and at the same time manipulating it. Migrants face a legal and political regime that is quitedifferent from that of the 1990s and early 2000s. In order to secure refugee status, they find themselves caught up in astate-managed, complex reception system. Despite being in a weak and precarious position they move tactically in anunstable and uncertain environment to suit their life objectives.

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