Earlier this week, Prime Minister Mark Carney and MPs from other political parties got here together to lift the Pride flag on Parliament Hill.<\/p>\n
But an advocacy group that helps LGBTQ refugees come to Canada and the U.S says the federal government\u2019s recent border law is putting people vulnerable to being sent back to countries where they face persecution.<\/p>\n
Devon Matthews, Rainbow Railroad\u2019s chief program officer, said her organization is anxious about its working relationship with Ottawa because the federal government reduces the variety of refugees it admits and cuts the organization\u2019s funding.<\/p>\n
She said it\u2019s also alarmed by a brand new law requiring that refugee claims be made inside a yr of the claimant\u2019s first arrival in Canada.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has nothing to do with the the explanation why someone can have waited or why someone doesn\u2019t meet the one-year bar,\u201d Matthews told The Canadian Press.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIt actually is only only a technical eligibility requirement that doesn\u2019t serve to really give the chance for the person to talk to the intricacies of why they might have had to attend.\u201d<\/p>\n
A former Middle Eastern international student who lived as an openly gay man in Canada is amongst those left in limbo by the brand new law.<\/p>\n
The previous student told The Canadian Press he filed a refugee claim after photos of his time here in Canada were discovered once he returned home, putting his safety in danger.<\/p>\n
But he said that because he studied in Canada for two-and-a-half years starting in 2022, he has been told his refugee claim is ineligible under the brand new border law, C-12.<\/p>\n
The Canadian Press has agreed not to call him or his home country as a consequence of risks facing his relations still there.<\/p>\n
\u201cI used to be supporting the LGBTQ community and I used to be in a variety of events and a few stories from social media that leaked out in my society back there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo some incidents and \u2026 some pictures had fallen into bad people\u2019s hands they usually threatened to tell the police and to beat me up. So it happened greater than once, and when the last time happened I felt that I can\u2019t live like that and I will likely be living in fear.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Several Middle Eastern countries have morality laws that punish LGBTQ individuals with prison terms. The refugee claimant said his family would also face social and economic repercussions due to his orientation.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWhile you get discovered as a LGBTQ person, that\u2019s it, that\u2019s the tip of your life. You’ll be able to\u2019t work, you may be arrested in your own home,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd naturally, the scandal for the family, since it\u2019s not something that\u2019s accepted.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I ran because if that happened, I’d spend my life in jail. And even in the event that they didn\u2019t put me in jail for a very long time, that\u2019s it for my profession, that\u2019s it for my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said his refugee claim was proceeding easily and had been approved for file review \u2014 a less intensive examination for low-risk refugee claims.<\/p>\n
But when C-12 passed earlier this yr, he became one in every of roughly 30,000 individuals who received letters saying their refugee claim may now not be eligible because they first entered Canada greater than a yr before making their claim.<\/p>\n
The one-year rule applies to refugee claims made on or after June 3, 2025 and retroactively to first arrivals on or after June 24, 2020.<\/p>\n
While refugee claims filed by people in this case won’t be sent to the Immigration and Refugee Board for review, they’re still eligible for a pre-removal risk assessment, or PRRA. The PRRA has a historically low approval rate since it tends to be the first appeal avenue for rejected claims on the IRB.<\/p>\n
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The PRRA process is primarily paper-based but interviews might be requested if an officer needs more information.<\/p>\n
Immigration Minister Lena Diab told a Senate committee hearing in February that when it\u2019s clear people should give you the chance to remain in Canada based on documented evidence, \u201cthey get a \u2018yes\u2019 immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n
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