Current challenges and concerns
Canada’s 2014 citizenship law reform (Bill C24) imposes a generational time limit on passing Canadian citizenship to children born abroad. It has also expanded the measures to revoke the citizenship of Canadian-born and naturalized citizens based on considerations that range from fraudulent attempts to acquire citizenship, to being convicted of various crimes. Some concerns include the fact that:
- this applies to those who may possess dual nationality
- this legislation risks targeting those belonging to specific ethnic populations because of nationality laws in other countries
- there is no right to a hearing or appeal process
- the decision to revoke citizenship has been transferred from the judiciary to the politically elected Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, and
- the organizations in Canada that collect data on stateless persons may not be collaborating with respect to data collection methods or information collected.
Useful links
The Canadian Centre on Statelessness
The Canadian Centre on Statelessness (CCS) is a non-profit organisation that seeks action against statelessness through research, advocacy and the fostering of a national community of allies including persons affected by statelessness. Founded in 2014, the Centre’s mandate is to affect societal, political and legislative changes as they relate to the protection and status of stateless persons. CCS is the first centre of its kind in Canada where those who wish to join the cause can learn about statelessness in the Canadian and global contexts, meet and discuss issues, and collaborate and partner in the course of advocacy and research. For further information visit www.statelessness.ca.
Links to Further Reading
Erauw, Gregg. 2015, Compatibility of the 1954 Convention with Canada’s Legal Framework, available here.
Brouwer, Andrew. 2012. Statelessness in the Canadian Context, UNHCR, available here.