Uh, Oh! The European Union Playing HardBall
When is a country sovereign, and its decisions its own? When its decisions reflect its position of sovereignty. For example, every country has its laws of settlement, of accepting foreign elements as immigrants into the fabric of the country, to enjoy its social, political, legal system. Most countries welcome some measure of increasing their population through the diversity of enfolding those of other cultures and societies into their own.Most countries feel an obligation to encourage immigration, particularly countries whose standard of living is sufficiently established to extend welcome to citizens from other countries facing the uncertainty of political freedoms from totalitarian regimes, or countries at war. And then a certain number of refugees fleeing oppression and harm are welcomed. Countries see it in their best interests to encourage migration of professionals whose skills will then augment those of the native population.
Other countries encourage the migration of money and entrepreneurship. Countries with a faltering birth rate see immigrants as a source of future citizens; socially, culturally, politically -absorbed citizens. The future of resource- and people-wealthy countries is economically assured. But most countries, while mindful of their obligation to accept a certain number of refugee claimants, reserve the right to outline the signal points of acceptability for other would-be immigrants.
As unfortunate as it seems, economic migrants are not all that welcome in many countries, already engaged in trying to absorb, encourage and establish the immigrants they have taken in. And there are certain countries struggling to establish themselves economically whose citizens are not particularly trusted to return to their home countries when they make application for visitors' visas. Rather than initiate the more complicated and lengthier enterprise of applying for immigration status.
Individuals from specific backgrounds and countries who enter Canada, for example, with a student's visa, or a temporary visa for the purpose of holidaying, or visiting with resident acquaintances or extended family members, often forget their original intention of returning home. They remain as illegal immigrants. Or they attempt to claim refugee status when their visas expire. This is a huge problem for countries like Canada.
Thus it is that Immigration officers take careful stock of who it is applying for temporary visas, and make their determination on the basis of intelligence gathered for that very purpose, attempting to identify genuine visa applicants, and those who appear to have no intention of returning home. Although Canada, like many other countries, has specific visa requirements, the system is still vulnerable to abuse.
Along comes the European Union, demanding that Canada recognize all member-countries of the EU and offer them unquestioningly, the privilege of entering Canada visa-free. This privilege is extended to certain countries with which Canada has exchange agreements, and from whose citizens Canada has traditionally not faced illegal-status problems. It is Canada's choice, as a sovereign country, mindful of its internal needs, to determine which countries it proffers visa-free status to.
Yet here is the European Union, huffing and puffing in indignation that Canada is unwilling to proffer that status to its newly-commissioned members: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. Britain, Germany and France, members of the EU, and as such, extenders of visa-free entry to all EU member-countries face a situation where they have become inundated with individuals from newly-affiliated EU countries, and they struggle to accommodate the unanticipated throng.
Canada has no wish to join them in this acceptance, willy-nilly, of new immigrants to her shore. The time-honoured method of applying for immigrant status in Canada is still and always available to any who would honour us with their presence as landed immigrants. Yet here is the European Union, playing the heavy, warning Canada that it is prepared to exact sanctions on this country should it not see tangible evidence of progress in the welcome of EU-member citizens visa-free to this country.
"Failing such progress, appropriate steps could be considered against Canada." Ohhh, Scary.
Evidently, Canada and the United States were two of four countries that the European Union identified in their report tabled by the European Commission. There has been no attempt by the EU to frighten the United States into line with EU demands. Wonder why.
Labels: Canada, Political Realities
posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, September 19, 2007
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