Humans have rights, whether refugee or migrant

All the above anonymous writers or their parents or may be their grand / great-grand parents were once like the 400 Tamils @-BC is a fact that they forget, just like we all came through different colored-wombs but to the same world. I was born here but my grand parents came like those 400 Tamils in a boat, but from a different country. That’s the major difference!

So during school days, I used to claim superiority, and smartly argue with other friends as if I am one of those TRUE Canadians since I was born here. But when I grew up and became a teacher working in a college in (NWT) Iqaluit, I was looked down by the Natives (Native Indians) of Canada, as an Immigrant because they claimed that they are the True Canadians who own this land. Mind you, many of those True Canadians have never come to Toronto.

So finally, the bottom line is "who is a true Canadian is a comparative term" which Iqaluit taught me, and since then I felt sorry for self-claiming superiority over those (classmates) Canadian citizens who were once refugees. So let us think we are "all equal and same" in the eyes of the Natives of this land. Let us live and let others also live peacefully. Thanks to Canada! Love all!!
S.P

All Human beings have rights and deserve to be respected, whether they are applying to come to Canada, walking off an airplane into Immigration Canada and applying for refugee status, or a tourist visiting, or child born here.

However, Immigration Canada can not account for thousands of people who have come to Canada and then claimed refugee status. Where did they go?

Poor and suffering, oppressed people are not new to Canada indeed.

My mother came to Canada after leaving depression Ireland to work in a sweatshop factory in England saved her money and then put herself through nursing school (both parents had died by the time she was 15). She saved her money to come to Canada legally, and came by boat after a long wait. She had to wait until age 35 to have children, not by choice but by circumstance-There were no special services, no assistance, no counselling. My father's father left my grandmother alone to raise three boys. There was poverty and hard work and suffering for both parents-but no help. In fact, both lived through the great depression and had sibling infants die.

I say common sense and accountability for all new comers is very important. The services for seniors in this country need to be improved greatly. If we are going to speak of human rights, compassion or fairness then we must examine our priorities with common sense, equity and fairness.

Our refugee policies are generous-Canada is a generous country and donates millions upon millions of tax dollars in foreign aid. Canadians themselves, send money to people in need all over the world-often their family members in poor countries. But poverty and unemployment for Canadians is still a major problem and our treatment and respect of the men and women who have worked in Canada-their whole lives- must also be taken into consideration.

I had to move my mother back to small town Ontario to afford quality retirement living with nursing care. Her living conditions in a Vancouver nursing care facility were apauling!! It was right out of Stephen King novel. BC's dirty secret!! My mother was moved to this facility (like so many others here in this city) in a digusting manner by BC's hospital triage service-that gave us no choices!!Her health was bad at the time and we could not afford to keep up her apartment and had to pay the substandard nursing facility $1100./month. She was in a room with three other women and was not allowed to use the bathroom as she had contracted C-difficile in a Vancouver Hospital after surgery for a broken wrist. All the residents were kept in wheel chairs and fed hydromorphone. My mother was in her 70's and her mind was good. But there was no physiotherapy and no one had faith she would walk again-As family , we were "TOLD" what to think about her illness, her prognosis etc. I paid for physiotherapy privately myself! I am not a home owner or a rich woman.

To afford a retirement home with nursing care and her own room would cost us $6000.00 per month in Vancouver and there were 6 months to two year waitlists for those facilities.

My father worked 40 years in a factory and farmed this land. His grandfather farmed this land. My mother worked her entire life-Where is the justice? Their house was sold after my father died and the market price was $100000. in rural Ontario. The estate was less than $200,000. My mother has been living in a facility in Ontario that costs her $3000/month. for 4 years in total. (very good price for a decent place to live). Her pension is only $1700./month. She is 80 years old. What happen's when her money runs out?

Canada is ignoring the needs of its citizens. While we should not demonize the Tamil refugees for their circumstances, the outrage speaks to a lack of compassion and fairness to those people suffering at home. The political needs for more "tax generating citizens", justifies supplying millions upon millions in language and welfare services for refugees and newcomers and their families (including seniors). But no one looks at the state of care and support services for seniors. In fact, its swept under the rug. Meanwhile wealthy speculators from other countries buy up property and our resources. This drives the cost of housing.

If you plan to get old-you better be rich here in BC, or Canada for that matter-because no one will be outraged at your situation. Charity needs to begin at home.

Yes, Anonymous, some white Canadians may have also arrived here by boat but most, like my Hungarian parents, arrived here as legitimate refugees; in their case, fleeing an invading Russian army which brutally repressed and killed citizens after they where kicked out of Hungary by them.

My father, who was an electrical engineer in Hungary, barely survived his escape from there with my mother, seeing many friends and relatives disappear or die horribly during the invasion. When they arrived in Canada, my parents expected nothing, and received nothing from the Canadian people. In fact, my father would go door to door asking if anyone needed yard work, painting, etc. just to make some money so he could support myself, my brother and my sister who were born shortly after their arrival to Canada.

The Tamil refugees on the other hand have attempted to sneak into Canada illegally using fake passports or no (destroyed) passports at all, mocking our laws, showing criminal intention and leaving their true intentions in question. As a result of their actions, Canadians will now have to take care of them at our expense while other perhaps well-educated and trained refugee claimants from other countries suffer and wait in line for years in the hope of being accepted by Canada legally so they may become hard-working, law-abiding citizens.

Think about this before you jump on the bleeding-heart "let them all in - we're all equal" left-wing bandwagon. Everyone should be treated equal in Canada, but only if they choose to follow our laws like true Canadians do. Nobody should be given special rights that others did not have in this country, especially if they're not even a Canadian citizen yet and choose to ignore our laws at the expense of all Canadians and other honest refugee claimants.

Great work - it's good to see our union supporting the basic rights of these people.