Immigration News from around the world

[davkakach]

(Center for Immigration Studies, www.cis.org)



1. Canada: Minister rules out amnesty for illegal workers
2. Ireland: Country is growing mecca for foreign workers
3. France: Little change seen a year after riots
4. Netherlands: Gov't to propose ban on burkas
5. Germany: Prosecutors seek arrest of 9/11 suspect
6. Australia: Dep't head defends detainee monitoring policy
7. N.Z.: Iranian visa overstayer returned to prison (story, link)



No Amnesty for Undocumented Workers
Solberg holds firm that Canada won't allow immigration queue jumpers, despite severe labour shortage
By Sharda Vaidyanath
Epoch Times, November 17, 2006
http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/6-11-17/48264.html

Despite opposition calls to halt the deportation of refugees who work in the underground economy, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Monte Solberg told parliament last Friday that there will be no amnesty for undocumented workers in Canada.

'We cannot turn a blind eye to the fact that these people are here illegally.' Solberg said, repeating that while his department has increased temporary work visas dramatically, people will not be allowed to 'jump the queue.'

Meanwhile, NDP MP Olivia Chow has tabled a petition asking the government to halt deportations until immigration policies are set, and anti-deportation advocates are calling for action.

It is estimated that approximately 200,000 failed refugee claimants or visitors with expired visas are working in Canada. Unions say these workers are helping fill a severe labour shortage in Canada's construction, agricultural and service sectors.

Liberal MP Mario Silva says the shortage of skilled trade workers such as bricklayers and carpenters has created a crisis in the housing industry in Calgary and Toronto. He says the system for handling foreign workers is extremely bureaucratic and the numbers that are accepted are inadequate compared to what the economy needs. At the same time, current immigration regulations allow excessive numbers of PhDs and engineers to enter the country legitimately.

'We are robbing professionals from third world countries that have spent millions training their people only to come to Canada to drive cabs.'

In 2005, CIC admitted 100,000 foreign temporary workers to address labor shortages in certain areas of the economy. Solberg said there is currently a backlog of 800,000 legitimate applicants waiting to be processed.

Unions and community groups that represent undocumented workers have lobbied the past five immigration ministers for change, but without success. In 2005/6, Canada deported 11,286 people. However, there is no record as to how many of these were undocumented workers or economic migrants.

Luin Goldring, Professor of International Migration and Immigration at York University, says very little research has been done on undocumented workers in Canada, adding that various administrations in the government 'seem bent on ignoring the issue.' She says it is seen more as a U.S. problem, where an estimated 30% of all foreigners are illegal and yet are counted in the census.

'There's clearly a bit of crisis in terms of control but at the same time it has clear economic benefits for employers, consumers and just about everybody.'

Most undocumented workers are concentrated in large cities like Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary, and work in sectors of the economy that tend to be less structured, such as the construction and services industries.

Because of their lack of legal status, undocumented workers have virtually no protection from abuse and exploitation on the job. They also have no access to any benefits such as health care, membership in unions or work place safety.

'They live essentially a life of running for years,' says Cosmo Mannella. Director of the Labourer's International Union of North America.

Union leaders, politicians and academics alike agree that Canada is losing billions of dollars to a growing underground economy. But the argument goes that if gainfully employed undocumented workers are granted work permits—eventually leading to permanent resident status--a whole array of taxes could be collected while at the same time eliminating the opportunity for exploitation.

The post 9/11 Anti-Terrorism Act brought about a shift in Canada's policy regarding economic migrants. Because Canada has negotiated a number of new and restrictive measures with the United States regarding border crossings, economic migrants are now looked at more as a security risk rather than on compassionate and humanitarian grounds. Critics say this is a compelling argument to normalize the situation for undocumented workers.

'The whole thing is motivated by what is politically expedient, not by what is good policy,' says Mannella.



Ireland sees spike in foreign workers
By Anthony Healy
The Washington Times, November 17, 2006
http://www.washtimes.com/world/20061116-111331-8745r_page2.htm

DUBLIN -- First-time visitors to Ireland may be surprised to find that the comely colleen serving Guinness in the local pub is, in fact, Polish.

After several centuries of a hardscrabble life that has seen Irish men and women emigrating around the world, taking their culture and legends with them, a decade of rapid economic growth has made the land of shamrocks a primary destination for hordes of immigrants, mainly from Eastern Europe.

Foreign nationals now account for 10 percent of the population, twice as many as just two years ago, forcing the government for the first time to begin drafting a formal immigration policy to deal with the influx.

'Make no mistake, we are in competition with other economies for go-ahead people with experience or qualifications that are in short supply at home,' said Michael McDowell, the minister for justice, who must find a way to balance the nation's deep-seated traditions with the 'Celtic Tiger's' growing demand for skilled labor.

'Immigration policies are first and foremost about what is best for Irish society.'

But recognition of the economic need for foreign workers has done nothing to ease the shock experienced by one woman on a visit to Dublin from rural Ireland. 'I asked three people for directions, and not one of them spoke English,' she complained.

Similar anecdotes about pubs where all the staff speak Polish are borne out by recent figures from the Central Office of Statistics.

More than 80 percent of the new immigrants are under age 44, and almost half come from states that joined the European Union in 2004. Large numbers are employed in the retail, agriculture and construction sectors, helping to fuel one of the fastest-growing economies in Europe.

The ethnic and linguistic mixing, confined a few years ago to the capital, now reaches into even the smallest and most remote towns and villages. Amid the wild scenery of Connemara in the far west of Ireland -- where John Ford filmed 'The Quiet Man' -- is the Killary Adventure Center. All the bar staff and kitchen staff are Polish.

'It's good to be able to talk to each other in Polish,' said Anna, who has been in Ireland for two years and intends to return to Poland 'when I've saved some money.' She asked that her last name not be used.

In the southeast of Ireland in Dungarvan, population 15,000, there is now a Polish Advisory Center, located just down the road from the Polskie Sklepy -- the Polish Grocer. The local movie theater recently hosted a Polish film festival.

The nation's main Internet service provider, Eircom, now provides its services in Polish, as do many large companies.

By far the largest bloc of new immigrants come from Poland and Lithuania, having received an automatic right to work in Ireland when their countries joined the European Union in 2004.

Stunned by the unexpected influx, Ireland has followed Britain in imposing tougher restrictions on citizens of Romania and Bulgaria when their nations join the EU in January.

Michael Martin, the minister for enterprise, trade and employment, has said it is time 'to take stock, be cautious and concentrate on addressing the integration needs of those who have already come to live and work in Ireland.'

It is not clear how the new legislation will affect the handful of Bulgarians and Romanians already living in Ireland -- people like Chris, a Bulgarian who overstayed a student visa, works in a supermarket while studying accounting, and has married an Irishman.

'It is very strange, is it not?' said Chris, who spoke only on the condition that her real name not be used. 'In most countries in the world, the men chase the women, but in Ireland it is the women who chase the men.'



Paris, a year later
The Providence (R.I.) Journal, November 17, 2006
http://www.projo.com/opinion/editorials/content/projo_20061117_edparis.3215267.html

On the anniversary of last year's riots, the suburbs of Paris were relatively quiet. But how much has really changed since November 2005, when immigrants or their children set off three weeks of chaos in the poor and dingy suburbs that ring postcard Paris?

Since mid-September, there have been at least four gang attacks on Paris police. Last month, thugs forced passengers off of four public buses before setting them afire, then, in at least one case, stoning the firefighters who tried to put out the flames. In the city of Marseille, thugs firebombed a bus with a passenger still on it. The victim, a 26-year-old woman of Sengalese origin, suffered burns on over 70 percent of her body.

The problem in France, as elsewhere in Europe, is a growing population of immigrants or their native-born children who are poor, unemployed, isolated and inflamed by radical Muslim preachings. These countries no doubt thought that immigrants and their children would do the hard labor and meld into the society -- or at least maintain quiet ethnic enclaves.

Poor prediction, it turns out. The second generation, especially, is caught between the old ways of its parents and the liberated European culture. The rioters and their apologists argue that many Europeans discriminate against them in the job market and in other spheres.

Their claims have some validity. Europe is not a rambunctious immigrant-welcoming place like the United States.

The terrible worry is that government programs designed to acculturate immigrants cannot reach angry minorities who don't want to morph into Europeans.

Radical Islamists, meanwhile, have alarmed the society with death threats against the pope, the director of the Berlin opera, and countless other politicians and ordinary citizens who supposedly offended them. In some cases, fanatics have murdered people. Where are the community leaders offering self-criticism about the violence and lessons about free speech?

On the anniversary of the Paris riots, a thousand people marched through the high-rise-slum suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois to commemorate the accidental electrocution of two youths -- the incident believed to have set off the riots. The two young men may or may not have been chased by police when they hid near an electrical transformer, but in neither case did the police kill them. Grievance-mongers don't care about such details.

Americans have an illegal-immigration problem, but Europe has an immigration problem from hell -- a growing pool of sullen young people who cannot or will not assimilate into their host cultures. With birthrates among the native European stock falling below the replacement rate, the future looks grim.



Dutch government proposes a ban on wearing burkas in public
The Globe and Mail (Canada), November 17, 2006
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061117.wburqaban17/BNStory/International/home

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The Dutch government said Friday it plans to draw up legislation “as soon as possible” banning full-length veils known as burkas and other clothing that covers a person's entire face in public places.

“The Cabinet finds it undesirable that face-covering clothing — including the burka — is worn in public places for reasons of public order, security and protection of citizens,” Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk said in a statement.

Basing the order on security concerns apparently was intended to respond to warnings that outlawing clothing like the burqa, worn by some Muslim women, could violate the constitutional guarantee against religious discrimination.

In the past, a majority of the Dutch parliament has said it would approve a ban on burkas, but opinion polls in advance of national elections on Nov. 22 suggest a shift to the left, and it is unclear if a majority in the new parliament would still back the ban.

Once the Cabinet drafts the bill, it is sent to the 150-member legislature for enactment.



German prosecutors demand arrest of suspect Montassadeq
Expatica News, November 17, 2006
http://www.expatica.com/actual/article.asp?subchannel_id=26&story_id=34452

Hamburg - German prosecutors filed an appeal Friday, demanding the arrest of Mounir al-Motassadeq, who was still free on bail despite his conviction the previous day for helping the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington.

Judges in the German port city of Hamburg had ruled that Motassadeq should remain free until a forthcoming hearing on sentencing, even though his penalty is expected to be increased from the seven years' jail he received at an earlier trial.

The state superior court judges said that while the temptation to escape abroad might be greater now, Motassadeq had always fulfilled his conditions of bail. He was convicted last year of being part of a Hamburg terrorist cell and on Thursday of an actual role in 9/11.

Frank Wallenta, a prosecutor in the federal justice capital, Karlsruhe, said no date had been set for a review of the bail decision, 'but they have to realize this is a fairly urgent issue.'

Wallenta said the Moroccan student's wife and offspring had left Germany 'a relatively short time ago.'



Immigration head defends Christmas Is detainee monitoring
Immigration says there is no intention to observe Christmas Island detainees inappropriately.
Australian Broadcasting Corporation, November 17, 2006
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200611/s1790630.htm

The head of the Immigration Department, Andrew Metcalfe, says detainees at the new high-tech detention centre at Christmas Island will be treated with dignity.

Paul Power from the Refugee Council of Australia says the $240 million, 800-bed centre is a waste of taxpayers' money and is like a maximum security jail, with lock down facilities and cameras in detainees bedrooms.

'There are echoes of Guantanamo Bay in the design and the location of the facility,' he said.

At the Sydney Institute last night, Mr Metcalfe said the decision to build the centre was taken during an explosion in illegal boat arrivals, though the numbers had since dwindled.

He says the behaviour of staff at the centre will come under strict scrutiny.

'I can firstly assure you that there would be no intention to observe people inappropriately,' he said.

'And indeed any of those measures in the operation of the centre will be part of the ongoing communication with the ombudsman and the Equal Opportunity Commission and the privacy commissioner, who are not backward in coming forward in ensuring there are arrangements in place.'



Iranian overstayer sent back to prison
Stuff.co.nz, November 18, 2006
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3864507a12855,00.html

An Iranian overstayer was yesterday sent back to Mt Eden Remand Prison where he has spent the past two years because he refuses to return to his homeland for fear of persecution.

Immigration Department lawyers successfully argued Hossein Yadegary – also known as Thomas Yadegary since converting to Christianity – should continue to be detained.

Mr Yadegary, a chef, has been in custody awaiting deportation since the dismissal of his appeal to the Refugee Status Appeal Authority in October 2004.

The Immigration Department have to appeal before the court every month to keep him in detention.

Mr Yadegary refuses to sign travel documents, which the Iranian authorities require, allowing him to be deported back to Iran.

Mr Yadegary stood in court yesterday and told the judge he was too scared to go back to Iran because of the persecution he will face for converting from Islam to Christianity.

'I accept the Lord in my heart but if I was to go back to Iran I would be tortured, abused, or assaulted,' Mr Yadegary said.

However Judge Robert Kerr said in order for Mr Yadegary to be released from prison to apply for refugee status on humanitarian grounds, he would need to prove his was an exceptional circumstance.

Judge Kerr said an example of this would be severe mental or physical health problems or an extreme humanitarian situation.

Mr Yadegary's lawyer, Isabel Chorao, said her client posed no flight risk, he had a wealth of support from the Catholic church and he had spent two years incarcerated for no crime.

'I regret to say however, these are not exceptional circumstances, and I'm required to apply the law,' Judge Kerr said.

He said he granted the warrant of committment application, to be reapplied for in 28 days on December 15.

Immigration Department lawyer Emma Cotton argued Mr Yadegary was detained because he was illegally in New Zealand and had refused to co-operate with the department.

She said his three previous applications for release had also been declined.

Ms Cotton said Mr Yadegary was refused refugee status after arriving in New Zealand in 1993 and has since 'exhausted all available remedies'.

[MarZutra]

Thought you'd all enjoy this....

'The Rape of Europe"
From the desk of Paul Belien on Wed., 10/25/06
 
The German author Henryk M. Broder recently told the Dutch newspaper  De Volkskrant (12 October) that young Europeans who love freedom, better emigrate.   Europe as we know it will no longer exist 20 years from now. Whilst sitting on a terrace in Berlin, Broder pointed to the other customers and the passers-by and said:  melancholically:   "We are watching the world of yesterday."
Europe is turning Muslim. As Broder is sixty years old he is not going to emigrate himself. "I am too old," he said. However, he urged young people to get out and "move to Australia or New Zealand. That is the only option they have if they want to avoid the plagues that will turn the old continent uninhabitable."

Many Germans and Dutch, apparently, did not wait for Broder's advice. The number of emigrants leaving the Netherlands and Germany has already surpassed the number of immigrants moving in. One does not have to be prophetic to predict, like Henryk Broder, that Europe is becoming Islamic.

Just consider the demographics.  The number of Muslims in contemporary Europe is estimated to be 50 million. It is expected to double in twenty years.   By 2025, one third of all European children will be born to Muslim families.   Today Mohammed is already the most popular name for new-born boys in Brussels, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and other major European cities.

Broder is convinced that the Europeans are not willing to oppose Islamization. "The dominant ethos," he told De Volkskrant, "is perfectly voiced by the stupid blonde woman author with whom I recently debated.   She said that it is sometimes better to let yourself be raped than to risk serious injuries while resisting. She said it is sometimes better to avoid fighting than run the risk of death."

In a recent op-ed piece in the Brussels newspaper De Standaard (23 October) the Dutch (gay and self-declared "humanist") author Oscar Van den Boogaard refers to Broder's interview. Van den Boogaard says that to him coping with the Islamization of Europe is like "a process of mourning."  He is overwhelmed by a "feeling of sadness."  "I am not a warrior," he says, "but who is?  I have never learned to fight for my freedom.  I was only good at enjoying it."

As Tom Bethell wrote in this month's American Spectator:  "Just at the most basic level of demography the secular-humanist option is not working."  But there is more to it than the fact that non-religious people tend not  to have as many children as religious people, because many of them  prefer to "enjoy" freedom rather than renounce it for the sake of children.  Secularists, it seems to me, are also less keen on fighting.   Since they do not believe in an afterlife, this life is the only thing they have to lose.   Hence they will rather accept submission than fight.   Like the German feminist Broder referred to, they prefer to be raped than to resist.  "If faith collapses, civilization goes with it," says Bethell.   That is the real cause of the closing of civilization in Europe.  Islamization is simply the consequence. The very word Islam means "submission" and the secularists have submitted already. Many Europeans have already become Muslims, though they do not realize it or do not want to admit it.

Some of the people I meet in the U.S. are particularly worried about the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe. They are correct when they fear that anti-Semitism is also on the rise among non-immigrant Europeans.  The latter hate people with a fighting spirit.   Contemporary anti-Semitism in Europe (at least when coming from native Europeans) is related to anti-Americanism.   People who are not prepared to resist and are eager to submit, hate others who do not want to submit and are prepared to fight. They hate them because they are afraid that the latter will endanger their lives as well.  In their view everyone must submit.

This is why they have come to hate Israel and America so much, and the small band of European "Islamophobes" who dare to talk about what they see happening around them. West Europeans have to choose between submission, conversion (Islam) or death.    I fear, like Broder, that they have chosen   submission - just like in former days when they preferred to be red rather than dead.

[davkakach]

Excellent piece, Marzutra.

European civil war is only a matter of time.  Today's situation is just like the Biblical Tower of Babel, and it cannot be sustained.  The solution is separation, not integration.  The average folks in Europe and in the U.S. seem to understand this instinctively, but the ruling elites want to impose a different, impossible reality upon us.  This will have disastrous consequences.

[MarZutra]

Dav you are so correct.  100%.  I pray that Israel will respond and respond HARSH to Syria and Iran so when the [censored] hits the fan here there will not be another holocaust.  You know "When a cat and do fight, the cat usually dies.....and they blame the Jew".  I was on another site chatting and spreading the JTF.  The blacks are all upset about Michael Richards, even on CNN a black animal said that he'd be cooked in the ovens in Germany, implying that he was a Jew right off.  Blacks can commit all the inhumanities and whenver they don't get their way....they too blame the Jew.  I was amazed at the quickness this monkey talkshow hoast named Ronald something or other opened with "Jew".  Amazing...

[MarZutra]

Canada is a finnished country.  Canadians think they are so much smarter than Americans and so much better than Americans.  They dismiss all the troubles in Europe on the, again, Ol-Whitey in that they weren't "tolerant" enough.  Canada is finnished...  We are the most dumbed down nation that is like a virgin walking through the streets of South Africa...  Sad but true..

[davkakach]

Many people throughout the world look down upon Americans as dumb.  This is the result of Hollywood exporting its filth to the rest of the world (the world outside the U.S. is the main consumer of Hollywood entertainment "goods"), and blackening America's name.  And that's separate from their sinister multicultural social engineering agenda that they peddle at home.