Citizenship of Convenience
There was a time, not that long ago, when emigrants fleeing their country of origin to begin life anew in another country which accepted them as emerging new citizens made a lifelong commitment to the accepting country. Its laws and priorities, values and customs became their own, while retaining vestiges of the culture from which they originally came. Citizenship was a valued and important state of being, assuring opportunities and quality of life for immigrants coming to Canada.It seems now that the attaining of Canadian citizenship has become for far too many a commodity, a means by which one expands opportunities without giving up too much. Citizenship as a convenience toward one's lifestyle, where one could take shelter when events turned ugly in one's homeland. And dual citizenship allows hyphenated Canadians, who are committed to Canada and things Canadian - but not necessarily committed to Canada and things Canadian, to trade in their security here from time to time when it is deemed timely or suitable according to circumstances.
Such Canadians, once having attained citizenship, could return to the country of origin when, in the case of a civil war, normalcy ensued. Or when one had earned and saved sufficient income from opportunities to prosper in Canada, then opened a new opportunity - to return to the homeland of birth to settle there once again in comfort. Well, there is nothing inherently, humanly wrong with any of this. But I take personal umbrage at the casual treatment of such an important investment.
There are many times when people see and seek opportunity and take the initiative to take advantage of it. To better their lives and those of their families. For economic success. To immerse oneself in a society that is relatively non-judgemental, that offers political and religious freedom. When these people have discovered such a country and are invited to join that country and assent to the invitation surely there is an element of commitment and loyalty that comes into play?
Still, one makes choices. If a choice to become a citizen of a country at one time in one's life seems reasonable and perhaps the only option one can take under difficult circumstances, one does just that. If at another, future time, one makes the determination that the country of refuge has served its purpose and new opportunities become available in the homeland country then that too is understandable.
But when such decisions result in the realization that a poor decision has been made and Canadian citizens find themselves involved in catastrophic conditions not necessarily of their making, do they still have the right to demand rescue of their adoptive (abandoned) country, and to feel sufficiently entitled to bitterly criticize that country's seeming lack of attention or alacrity in rescuing them from their disasters?
I think not.
posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, July 19, 2006
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