This somewhat naive story appeared in the Ottawa Citizen. Of course, as the Russian diplomat notes, not a Russians are "illegal immigrants", in fact most of the visitors are not even interested in "migrating" to Canada to live here, BUT they are very interested in obtaining Canadian residency mostly as "insurance" in case of eventual difficulties in Russia. Also, and more important, Russia poses specific security concerns, particularly with some of its "wealthy" citizens who may have questionable connections and require special scrutiny. Note my precious post this week discussing the case of a Russian woman denied a visitor visa due to questionable employer connections (Monday, January 24,2010)
Russia unhappy with tough visa rules
Russia unhappy with tough visa rules
'Not all visitors are illegal immigrants,' consul argues
By Jennifer Campbell, Ottawa CitizenJanuary 26, 2011
Canada and Russia have a different philosophy about mobility of people. That's the only conclusion the Russian consul can make after dealing with Canada's increasingly difficult visa regime.
"We believe that it should be the procedure of all countries to make the movement of people easier but to our surprise, Canada has made it tougher," said Andrey Varlamov, first secretary and consul at the Russian Embassy in Ottawa.
As an example, in order to come to Canada for a weekend conference, the form he has to fill out for a visa asks him for information about all of his children, step-children, and adopted children, and all of his brothers and sisters, including their present addresses and occupations. He must provide the dates and employers (including name, address and telephone number as well as monthly salary) relating to his job history for the past 10 years, as well as information about former spouses, and any political activity.
"It seems like a form you'd use if you'd want to emigrate," he said, "but instead, it's the form you fill out to come to Canada for a few days, on business, or for a vacation."
The issue isn't new, nor is it restricted to Russian residents. The form is the same for residents of any country with which Canada doesn't waive the visa requirement (Canada doesn't require visas for short-term visits from Americans or from citizens of most member states of the European Union.)
And Russia isn't the only country annoyed by this. Several countries in the Middle East and in South America are also feeling alienated by it.
Varlamov said that after a group of vocal countries put up a stink about the new forms, Citizenship and Immigration simplified them slightly, but he still likens it to "one step forward, three steps back."
He said he understands Canada's concerns about illegal immigration, but said that flaws in our immigration system are the problem and it would make more sense to fix those than to apply a band-aid solution that makes it more difficult for business travellers and tourists to get into the country for short stays.
"Not all people who would like to visit Canada are illegal immigrants," Varlamov said.
Ireland Update
Ireland's ambassador to Canada recently gave a group of Canadian Irish business people a frank assessment of the state of the Irish economy.
Raymond Bassett's talk to the Ireland-Canada Chamber of Commerce of Ottawa was titled "An Update on the Irish Economy: Implications for Irish Associations In Canada" and he described how Ireland went from a country commonly nicknamed the Celtic Tiger of economies, which had a gross domestic product growth well ahead of Germany's, to a country that's being bailed out by Germany and its European Union counterparts.
"We've been in the news a lot lately," the ambassador said, with more than a hint of understatement.
The Irish were "the poster boys for what to do," the example for most countries to follow, with balanced budgets and a widely envied debt-to-GDP ratio, Bassett said of the economy's heyday.
But after the country's dramatic fall, things are looking up. He said 2010 was the year Ireland came out of the recession and started to see some recovery, albeit "anemic recovery."
And now, its performance and strategies are being monitored by the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and the European Central Bank.
"To say it's been difficult isn't an exaggeration," Bassett said, and added that Ireland was hit by two crises at the same time, one fiscal and one with the banking system. "In 2007, we had full employment," he said and added that then an explosion of demand for services, a revenue slowdown and a budget deficit all resulted in what the world witnessed in 2008 and 2009, the legacy of which is "still affecting the country badly," he said.
But he ended his talk on an optimistic note. "It's been a difficult year. I hope were at the bottom of the banking crisis," he said, and added that he hopes there aren't further revelations to come out. He noted that things are going well with the Canada-EU trade talks (negotiators sat down last week for their sixth round of deal-making) and told the group of business people that "there will be greater opportunities in 2011 and 2012."
Jennifer Campbell is a freelance writer and editor in Ottawa. Reach her at
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