International Law

Chilean faces deportation after three decades in Canada

By Raj Sharma

Victor Morales, a man who has lived in Canada for more than three decades, is fighting deportation to a country that he has not seen since he was a child. It is a familiar refrain to immigration lawyers that are charged with the advocacy of such individuals who are Canadian in all but name. 

The Canada Border Services Agency is responsible for the enforcement of removal orders. The removal order itself is the culmination of due process that includes the preparation of a section 44 report, alleging the inadmissibility to Canada, a confirmation of the report by an independent administrative decision maker (the Immigration Division) and potentially an appeal by the concerned individual to the Immigration Appeal Division, which can consider humanitarian and compassionate considerations in its review.

Morales faces an uphill battle to remain in Canada. Once a removal order is deemed enforceable, there is little that an individual can do to overcome it. The fact that he has Canadian born children or has spent half a lifetime in this country does not, by itself, allow him an absolute right to remain in Canada. He has my sympathy, but the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act is enforcement legislation. The case law/jurisprudence (especially Medovarski) is clear: the Act prioritizes security. 

Full post as published by Canadian Immigration Blawg on February 07, 2011 (boomark / email).