According to the 2006 census, one in five Canadians is foreign-born. With such a diverse population, it is hardly surprising that events across the world resonate in Canada.
The recent wave of revolution in the Middle East and the unrest that has swept the region didn’t leave Canadians indifferent. Some foreign-born Canadians worry for their family back home and hope for the best outcome, while Canadians of all walks of life call for democracy.
On this cold Saturday, hundreds of Canadians gathered on Parliament Hill, right in front of the Peace Tower, to march in solidarity with the people pushing for democracy in Libya and Yemen. The protesters peacefully called for the end of the Gadhafi regime in Libya and a loosening of oppression in Yemen. Despite worrying reports from Libya where violence escalates and demonstrators clash with Gadhafi’s brutal security forces, people were optimistic in Ottawa and hoped for a better future.
As countries scramble to evacuate citizens, some people complain once again that their tax money is being used to rescue “hyphenated-Canadians,” i.e. Canadians with dual citizenship. Comments such as these can be found on the Web:
it’s sad what’s happening in the Mid East …….. but if you’re a Canadian wanting the better of both worlds, such as nice weather there and live there then come back here for a few months for our health care and everything else here …… you can pay for your own transportation back to Canada (in other words, government will have plane there but bill you for flight back) and not get a freebie from us. tired of bailing people out!
The question is….”Why are we using tax dollars to save these “Canadians”?” If you work or visit…or live there like most of them are….then that’s your dumb fault. It should cost them the full price if they want out. airfare, taxes,fuel and even the insurance policy money all divided up by the number of people using the plane. If you have been in the country for more than a month, you should be on your own to find a way out. I am tired of us taxpayers rescuing “Canadians” who choose to live outside of Canada.
These ignorant comments really piss me off, as a dual citizen myself (France and Canada) and as a traveller. First, becoming a Canadian citizen is not as easy as people think. You don’t become Canadian overnight. You have to go through the immigration process to become a permanent resident (and that can take a few years). Then there is a residency requirement to maintain your permanent resident status: you must live in Canada for at least two years within a five-year period. You are eligible to apply for citizenship after three years in Canada a permanent resident and it takes at least a year for the application to be processed. So these Canadians abroad actually lived in Canada to become Canadian citizens.
Second, Canadians who leave the country for an extended period of time lose their provincial health plan coverage and won’t benefit from many social programs upon their return. They will have to establish residency in Canada again to be eligible.
Is repatriating Canadians abroad a waste of money? Absolutely not. And if we really want to get into this childish “my tax dollars are being wasted” war, I’d rather my tax dollars be “wasted” on human lives than on G8 submits.
I’m sure some people hold Canadian passports for convenience. Let’s face it, it exists. But I’m equally sure that a lot of Canadians have dual citizenship because life brought them to Canada, and then abroad again. Is that a crime? Not in my book.
If Canadians are as outspoken as Americans, I am not surprised of the hostile comments.
Then again, for every hostile Canadian, I assume there is a friendly one.
Oh, it’s not just Libya and Yemen?!
I saw a Tunisian flag too!
It is the same everywhere… lot of people are only concerned about their wallets. 🙁
Hi Zhu,
Pardon my French but these comments are stupid. Who on earth says things like these? Idiots for sure. Yeah, ça me emmerde à moi aussi.
A Canadian is a Canadian, no matter if dual citizen or not. Does that citizen not pay taxes just like any other citizen? It seems to me that the idiots who made comments like that, are jealous of the fact that other citizens can travel abroad whenever they want while they are stuck in their pitiful little corners.
So what if people hold passaports for convenience? What about the process of getting those convenient passports; what about the hassles those folks go through to get them?
I never experienced it because, despite having been born in an independent Mozambique, my father was Portuguese therefore I automatically became a Portuguese; but my Mozambican cousins experienced it and they had to stay here for more than 8 years before becoming a national citizen. So it’s hard.
Beautiful pro-Democracy rally! 😀
Cheers
Sad to see what’s happening there in the middle-east and hope it will end soon.
Btw, I’m deeply impressed with the way you appreciate friends. I was away for more than a year and you’re still the first to drop by, thanks. I still regret that I didn’t know you were in KL the other day 🙁