NDP Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Jenny Kwan issued the following statement ahead of today’s committee meeting on the study of Conditions Faced by Asylum-Seekers where the Minister of Immigration will be testifying
MEDIA RELEASE: Liberals must protect the human rights of asylum-seekers
MEDIA RELEASE: Liberals must protect the human rights of asylum-seekers
“As the world experiences an unprecedented refugee crisis, Canada has a vital role to play in resettling people forced out of their homes by conflict, persecution and disasters. And as a signatory to the United Nations Refugee Convention, Canada has an obligation to recognize the rights of refugees to reach safety.
Ahead of today’s committee meeting on the study of Conditions Faced by Asylum-Seekers where the Minister of Immigration will be testifying, the NDP renews its call for the Liberals to end the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA). Since it allows Canada to turn back asylum-seekers, the STCA has put the lives of people fleeing persecution at risk and allowed a major Liberal donor and human smugglers to profit off their suffering.
Over the years, asylum-seekers have been trying to find refuge in Canada by travelling through irregular crossings like the border-crossers at Roxham Road in Quebec. These irregular crossings are not illegal. They are not even queue jumping. They are processed as inland refugees according to our rules — but without the protections for those seeking refuge. By suspending the STCA, the processing of refugees would be directed to official ports of entry where there is already government infrastructure to do it safely and with protections for asylum-seekers from human smugglers.
But instead of ending the STCA, the Liberals expanded its use by applying it to the “Five Eyes” countries. To make matters worse, the Liberal government is now in a court battle fighting against a federal court ruling that the STCA was unconstitutional. This is shameful.
Furthermore, the Liberals have made it even harder for asylum-seekers by adding layers of bureaucracy that delay the processing of asylum claims by another 12 to 24 months. Without a Refugee Protection Claimant document and a worker’s permit, asylum seekers are barred from employment and earning a living in Canada. And some asylum seekers are even indefinitely detained without any charges. This is wrong and Liberals must act now to ensure asylum-seeker are delivered the necessary documents so they can earn a living in Canada and to protect their human rights.
We must do everything we can to resettle refugees in our communities, ensuring they are given the support they need to build successful lives and new homes here in Canada.”
Latest posts
The rally is organized by the Hong Kong Pathway Alliance. Similar events are also taking place in Calgary and Toronto.
The pathway allows eligible Hong Kong residents in Canada, including people who studied or worked here, to apply for PR.
People here say they have waited for years and still do not know when their applications will be finished.
“Right now I’m stuck in limbo. It’s been a year and a half. I haven’t heard back from the IRCC regarding my application, and we’re continuously arguing with, we’re continuously hoping that IRCC sees our cases,” said Vikrambir Singh, another demonstrator.
“There’s not just me, there’s 40,000 plus applications that are stuck in limbo, and we don’t know when they’re going to get processed.”
They also point to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) processing time tool, which now suggests new applicants could wait more than 10 years for their PR.
The Immigration Minister recently told Parliament that there have been more than 46,000 applications under the Hong Kong PR pathways, and just over 13,000 had arrived.
“And the minister’s solution is, “don’t apply under the lifeboat scheme”. What is she even talking about? That scheme was specifically designed for Hong Kongers, said MP Jenny Kwan, representing Vancouver East for the NDP.
“So, it is absolutely outrageous that she would renege on the government’s promise in suggesting that the Hong Kongers should apply under a different stream. It is absolutely unacceptable.”
The federal government introduced special measures for Hong Kong residents in 2020, after China imposed the national security law in Hong Kong.
*Click image or link to read or watch the TV news story - https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/06/07/demonstrators-rally-hong-kong-pr-processing-backlog/
OTTAWA—The Canadian government is considering the use of artificial intelligence to save time creating influential assessment profile reports of offenders as they go to federal prisons, and is running a small-scale trial to test it, the Star has learned.
Carney government releases AI road map that aims to make Canada a leader
Federal Politics
Carney government releases AI road map that aims to make Canada a leader
Mentioned in lengthy documents tabled in Parliament last month and confirmed by Correctional Service Canada (CSC), the test run comes as the Carney government tries to ramp up AI adoption, including with billions in a national strategy released this week.
But the prison trial, which CSC says has not yet been used in real cases, is raising concerns from AI experts, criminal defence lawyers and the federal NDP’s public safety critic, who argue a widespread adoption could lead to crucial errors, exacerbate racial biases and put offenders and victims at risk.
Criminal profile reports, as they are called, are detailed “foundational documents” prepared by CSC staff during a prisoner’s intake process that identify risks and play a role in major decisions like access to programs and likelihood of parole.
Drawing from scores of official documents, they include details about an offender’s criminal history, the circumstances of their crimes, patterns of violence or behavioural, mental health and addiction issues, family and social background, trauma history, education and employment records, and even victim impact statements.
“This is what defines your offence cycle,” criminal defence lawyer Nora Demnati said of those reports. “It will have an impact on everything else that comes.”
That’s why the Carney government should slow down and consult widely, including with the CSC union, its lawyers and the Privacy Commissioner of Canada before going further, said NDP MP Jenny Kwan, the party’s public safety critic. Neither the Union of Safety and Justice Employees or the Office of the Privacy Commissioner have been consulted yet, they told the Star.
Kwan warned of a multitude of legal concerns that go both ways and can have a “cascading impact”: Violating the rights of inmates if mistakes are added to reports, on one hand, or hurting victims and prison staff if crucial information is missed by the AI summaries, on the other.
“When you have those kinds of risks associated with correctional policing matters, you can imagine what the huge ramifications might be,” Kwan told the Star. “You could potentially compromise people’s legal rights.”