The revised immigration policy of the United States under the Trump administration has forced migrants to seek asylum in Canada and a majority of them are from Haiti apart from Syria, Honduras and Yemen. They want to lead normal lives and hundreds of them arrive regularly at the US-Canada border. The route they usually follow is via New York and from there to the border.
Exodus from the U.S.
CNN reports that Haitians had entered the United States in large numbers after the outbreak of cholera in 2010 followed by an earthquake in the same year. Their numbers were in excess of 55,000 and they enjoyed Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
This is scheduled to expire in January 2018 and, hence, there is a rush for these migrants to leave the U.S. because the Trump administration has indicated that it would not renew the status.
Obviously, the authorities at the US-Canada border have to cope with the large number of asylum seekers who arrive every day and the authorities have installed tents to process the claims and carry out background checks. The process is a long one and there are occasions when a bottleneck occurs and the migrants have to wait for their turn to come. Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has had to deal with nearly 7,000 such persons in Quebec and the breakdown is 3,000 in July, and almost 4,000 in just the first half of August.
Canada accepts the challenge
Canada feels it is duty-bound to accept the responsibility of asylum seekers as a part of its humanitarian service. These people are disenchanted with the policies of the Trump administration and the attitude of the United States towards migrants who feel Canada is a better option to begin life afresh.
The spurt in their arrival at the US-Canada border has forced the authorities to accommodate them in Montreal's Olympic Stadium, which was home to the 1976 games.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his government have accepted the challenge and have geared up the immigration machinery to accept more migrants. The logic is simple – if the individual is clean and has no criminal record, he is welcome.
The country of origin is not a criterion for Canada because the asylum seekers belong to not only Haiti but also hail from countries like Honduras, Syria and Yemen. They have been forced to seek shelter in alien countries due to circumstances, mostly from violence. They are ordinary people and want to escape from situations where their lives and the lives of their near and dear ones are always in danger.
