IMMIGRATION POLICY

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Created by Katelyn Merritt, Soteira Hortop, and
Allison McAuley
REFUGEE IMMIGRATION IN CANADA
CASE STUDY After experiencing seventeen years of
abuse from her husband, Dularlie Bloodlal, a
Trinidadian woman, successfully immigrated to
Canada in 1988, only to be followed by her
violent husband. During his time in Canada, he
was convicted eleven times for physical and
verbal assault towards Dularlie. In order to
avoid imprisonment, Dularlies husband moved back
to Trinidad but continued sending death threats
through letters and phone calls if Dularlie were
to return to Trinidad. On orders of the Canadian
Immigration, Dularlie was deported back to
Trinidad on the premise that the country had
recently passed a family violence statute,
hypothetically protecting her from further abuse.
Canada accepts between 20,000 and 30,000
refugees and other displaces persons each year.

• IMMIGRATION POLICY
• Canada accepts refugees under three classes
• Convention refugee class people who are outside
  their country of citizenship and who have
  well-founded fears of persecution for reasons of
  race, religion, political opinion, nationality or
  membership in a particular social group
• Country of asylum class people who are outside
  their country of citizenship and who have been
  and continue to be seriously and personally
  affected by civil war, armed conflict or massive
  violations of human rights
• Source country class people who would meet the
  definition of Convention refugee but are still in
  their country of citizenship
• Applicants are not eligible to make a refugee
  claim if they
• have made a previous claim that was rejected
  have refugee status in a different country that
  you may return to
• have a previous claim that has been abandoned
• are seen as a threat to security, are involved
  with serious criminality or organized crime, or
  have violated human or international rights

Canadas has welcomed a total of 13.4 million
immigrants since 1901. Between 1991 and 2000
alone, 2.2 million immigrants were admitted to
Canada.
If found eligible, an applicant will be granted a
refugee protection hearing. This is an oral
hearing where the applicant is given the
protection of the Canadian Charter of rights and
freedoms and may represent themselves or receive
legal counsel. The hearings are conducted by the
Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) a
semi-judicial administrative tribunal who reports
to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration.
If the claim is accepted, the individual
applies for permanent residence. If claim is
rejected, claimant must leave Canada immediately,
but also has the option of appealing to the PRRA
(Pre-removal Risk Assessment) who will go over
the case.
Eighty percent of the worlds refugees are
comprised of women and children. Many of these
people are seeking refuge based on violation of
human rights. While some violence is committed by
actors of the state, the majority is perpetuated
domestically. Thus, the prominent issue for women
just like Dularlie, is that the legal system
focuses on the public actions of the state and
does not take into consideration the effects of
abuse in the private sphere.
On March 9, 1993, Canadas Immigration and
Refugee Board passed guidelines to which
interpreting the legal definition of a refugee
was contextualized in a gender sensitive manner,
thus considering the persecution experienced
within the home by so many women.