The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration’s report offers a clear roadmap for Canada to improve its lifeboat scheme for Hong Kongers

Yesterday, the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration released its report titled ‘Safe Haven in Canada: Special Immigration and Refugee Measures Are Urgently Needed For The People Of Hong Kong’, calling for the expansion of Canada’s lifeboat scheme following a long inquiry into the measures announced by the Canadian Government back in November 2020.

Hong Kong Watch associate and student activist, Joey Siu, gave oral evidence to the Committee’s inquiry on 18 February 2021 and Hong Kong Watch submitted written evidence.

The report highlights witness potential gaps in the current lifeboat scheme and in existing immigration and refugee policy, suggesting potential improvements. It comes after a cross-party group of Canadian parliamentarians wrote to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship outlining measures that the Government could adopt to improve its lifeboat scheme for Hong Kongers.

The Standing Committee recommendations to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, to expand the pathways for Hong Kongers to move to Canada, include:

-          Issuing study permits with relaxed criteria;

-          Extending the Working Holiday work permit to two years and include persons up to 35 years of age;

-          Extending the criteria for the open three-year work permit;

-          Creating a temporary public policy to allow pro-democracy activists within Hong Kong and third countries to apply for refugee status;

-          Adopting a policy to bring Hong Kongers at risk to Canada on temporary resident visas;

-          Expanding Canada’s family reunification policy to create a temporary public policy for extended family members of Canadian citizens and of pro-democracy activists living in Canada.

Commenting on the Standing Committee’s recommendations, Sam Goodman, Hong Kong Watch’s Senior Policy Advisor, said:

“We fully endorse the recommendations from the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, which offers a clear roadmap forward for the Canadian Government to improve its lifeboat scheme for Hong Kongers.

For some time now, Hong Kong Watch has called for the urgent expansion of the Government’s scheme to include the extension of the Working Holiday work permit, the expansion of family reunification rules, the adoption of a targeted scheme to help vulnerable activists, and a pathway to allow Hong Kongers to begin their asylum process in third-countries.

It is welcome to see the Standing Committee not only include Hong Kong Watch’s testimony and evidence within the report, but to adopt these measures in its recommendations.

As the human rights situation in Hong Kong continues to deteriorate at a worrying pace, we urge the Government to adopt these recommendations to ensure every Hong Konger has a lifeline out of the city.”

The full report and recommendations can be read here: https://www.ourcommons.ca/DocumentViewer/en/43-2/CIMM/report-7