CCR Resolutions Database

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  • Res.: 9
    Whereas:
    1. The needs of persons with mental health issues are not being adequately addressed by any of the divisions of the IRB;
    2. The guidelines for vulnerable persons do not meet these needs;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR advocate for the creation and implementation by the IRB of specialized mental health tribunals modelled upon the mental health courts in the criminal justice system.

  • Res.: 14
    Whereas:

    Some countries do not allow for adoption and thus persons from those countries are excluded from emigrating with or sponsoring their “de facto” family members.

    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR advocate for the promulgation of IRPA regulations on legal guardianship.

  • Res.: 3
    Whereas:
    1. The situation in Liberia is in transition and is improving.
    2. The country is not able to absorb big numbers of returnees.
    3. Human rights are not generally respected.
    4. Repatriation is not a durable solution for all Liberian refugees in the region and some may meet the Country of Asylum Class criteria.
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR:

    1. Urge CIC to consider resettlement of Liberians to Canada for whom repatriation is not the preferred option and as part of a broader effort to achieve durable solutions for all Liberian refugees in West Africa.
    2. Ask CIC to consult with interested NGOs in Canada regarding resettlement to Canada of Liberian refugees in West Africa.
    3. Encourage CIC to review sponsorship cases rejected in 2006 if the refugees live in camp-based situations and were rejected on the basis that repatriation is available to them.
    4. Request UNHCR to stop reducing financial support to the refugees in Buduburam Camp and restore the assistance to the past year level.
    5. Request CIDA to become actively involved in the post-war reconstruction in Liberia.
  • Res.: 8
    Whereas:
    1. It is important for protected persons to settle meaningfully in Canada through education, employment, etc.
    2. Presently, protected persons need to submit a special “protected status” document to be registered in certain programs.
    3. It takes 8 weeks for CIC to issue these documents.
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR call on CIC to issue“protected status” documents at the time the person is accepted by the IRB.

  • Res.: 1
    Whereas:

    The CCR recognizes the value of the participation and perspective of youth.

     
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR:

    1. Support the development of the CCR Youth Network and increasing meaningful youth engagement and leadership within the CCR.
    2. Add youth to the list of factors to be taken into account by the members of the CCR in the election of Executive Committee members.
  • Res.: 6
    Whereas:
    1. Migrant agricultural workers and other temporary work permit holders are living in a situation of segregation which prevents them from having effective recourse to justice;
    2. Migrant workers who have suffered an injustice are often deported before they can seek a legal recourse;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR demand that the status of worker be maintained during the period necessary to seize a tribunal of the matter and to await its resolution.

  • Res.: 4
    Whereas:
    1. The possibility of a war is looming in the Horn of Africa due to political intervention and ambition by the governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea in the civil war in Somalia.
    2. Many innocent people, mainly women and children, are already displaced and on the move to other neighbouring countries, such as Kenya, which already houses many refugees.
     
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR ask the Canadian government to collaborate with the African Union to achieve a more humane approach to diplomacy in the Horn of Africa and to use unilateral, bilateral, regional and multilateral means to apply pressure on:

    1. The Ethiopian government to withdraw its soldiers from Somalia and to refrain from further escalating the tension by dragging people into war.
    2. The Eritrean government to stop trying to wage their conflict with Ethiopia in Somalia.
  • Res.: 9
    Whereas:
    1. A decision has been made by the government of Canada to arm the officers of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
    2. The CCR has raised its concerns to the Prime Minister in this regard.
    3. Arming CBSA is absolutely unnecessary with negative impacts on refugees who have gone through persecution, mental trauma and torture.
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR oppose the arming of CBSA and advocate to overturn the decision.

  • Res.: 2
    Whereas:

    Recent information from various sources and complaints from refugees interviewed by the Damascus and other visa posts suggest that some refusals may be due to interpretation.

    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR urge CIC to review increasingly serious concerns around interpretation at interviews, including allegations of bias, and ask that standards be adopted to ensure quality of interpretation.

  • Res.: 7
    Whereas:
    1. The Arar Commission has identified Canadian complicity in Maher Arar’s rendition to torture in Syria;
    2. The Canadian government continues to argue that there may be circumstances under which individuals could be returned to a country where there may be grounds to believe they may be at risk of torture;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That:

    1. The CCR call on the government to enact legislation that unequivocally and absolutely prohibits the use of torture under any circumstances by any person, but in particular by any government official or persons acting in a government-related capacity;
    2. This legislation prohibit the use of information garnered as a result of torture;
    3. This legislation prohibit actions, including the sharing of information, that might reasonably be expected to place any person at risk of torture.
  • Res.: 5
    Whereas:
    1. According to IRPA, there is no independent review of:
      a) the decision of an officer to detain a foreign national because their identity has not been established.
      b) the Minister’s opinion that identity has not been established.
      c) once identity has been tendered, the decision that it is insufficient;
    2. According to international human rights law, detention without independent review constitutes arbitrary detention;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR demand that IRPA be amended to require that the Immigration Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board conduct an independent review of 1 a), b) and c).

  • Res.: 1
    Whereas:
    1. There have been many documented cases where CBSA officers at the Port Of Entry (POE) have issued removal orders against people seeking refugee protection in Canada before they were able to state their intent to claim refugee status.
    2. The consequence of this is to deprive a claimant of access to the Immigration and Refugee Board.
    3. There is no stay of removal pending an application for a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) once a removal order has been issued.
    4. As a result there are documented cases of people being removed without any risk assessment.
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR call on the government to issue regulations or guidelines that would require POE officers to ask persons subject to removal if they fear persecution in their country of origin or of habitual residence before issuing a removal order.

        

  • Res.: 3
    Whereas:
    1. There is now an optional protocol to the Convention against Torture which provides for on-site visits to detention centres around the world and which is open to signatures by member states;
    2. This protocol will not come into effect until 20 countries have ratified it and only six have currently ratified it;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR call upon the Canadian government and urge our sister organizations to ask for other governments to ratify the Optional Protocol of the Convention against Torture so that this can come into effect as soon as possible.

  • Res.: 1
    Whereas:
    1. The Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) is closing its regional offices at yearend;
    2. This will result in further reduction in quality of access to protection;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR:

    1. Call upon the Canadian government and the IRB to enable the continued operation of these regional offices;
    2. Request that the IRB provide full access to their resources and facilities to all claimants in all regions.
  • Res.: 4
    Whereas:
    1. The CCR is committed by Resolution 1, May 2003 to working for a process of regularization of people without status;
    2. The CCR has been working for many months on a proposal for regularization;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR adopt as policy the Proposal for the regularization of individuals and families without status, as approved by the Working Group on Inland Protection, including the call to:

    1. Provide an opportunity for seasonal agricultural workers to apply for permanent residence, similar to the opportunity provided under the Live-In Caregiver Program;
    2. Introduce an adjustment of status program similar to that introduced in 1972, whereby anyone who was already in Canada by a date (e.g. two years prior) may apply for status.
    3. Eliminate processing fees for humanitarian cases.
  • Res.: 2
    Whereas:
    1. The Human Rights Commission of the United Nations has ceased to exist and the new Human Rights Council has come into existence;
    2. There are a large number of Special Rapporteurs and special procedures whose existence depends on resolutions of the Human Rights Commission and whose expertise we do not want to lose;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR call upon the Canadian government and other governments to support the renewal of all of the current mandates of Special Rapporteurs and special non-conventional procedures of the United Nations in order not to lose their expertise.

  • Res.: 5
    Whereas:
    the CCR has a policy on bilingualism adopted by the executive committee on 2 February 1992;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR include, as far as it is possible, at least one panelist intervening in French and offer simultaneous translation for each panel.

  • Res.: 5
    Whereas:
    1. Safe, secure and affordable housing is a resource that plays a critical role in determining overall health and well-being and provides a base from which immigrants and refugees can seek employment, re-establish family relationships and make connections with the wider community;
    2. Immigrants and refugees are facing absolute and hidden homelessness problems in Canada;
    3. UNHCR Reception and Integration Handbook, ch. 2.8 (A Place to Call Home) outlines guidelines;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR:

    1. Write to all levels of government responsible for housing and immigration settlement to allocate more resources for affordable housing and to review the provision of adequate income and social assistance levels to facilitate access to safe, secure and affordable housing.
    2. Promote the best service guidelines in the area of housing developed by the UNHCR, ensuring that governments and service providers commit to the housing guidelines, and provide the support and resources needed to enable those guidelines to be maintained.
  • Res.: 10
    Whereas:
    1. United Nations and western countries have expressed serious concerns that war might break out between Eritrea and Ethiopia;
    2. Eritrea and Ethiopia are moving their troops to the border and preparing for war;
    3. If war breaks out, civilians, especially Eritrean refugees who are in Ethiopia and Ethiopian refugees in Eritrea, will face the consequence of the war as in the earlier rounds of wars;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR:

    1. Urge the UNHCR and CIC to recognize Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia and Ethiopian refugees in Eritrea as in urgent need of protection.
    2. Urge the Canadian government to expedite processing of private and government sponsorship of Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia and Ethiopian refugees in Eritrea.
    3. Urge the UNHCR that the cases of Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia and Ethiopian refugees in Eritrea who have been accepted by UNHCR as in need of protection and who wish to be resettled in Canada be referred to the relevant Canadian embassy.
    4. Ask the Canadian government to work towards peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
  • Res.: 3
    Whereas:
    1. The current Resettlement Assistance Program provides 1 year financial support to regular Government Assisted Refugees (GARs) and 2 years support for refugees under Joint Assistance Sponsorship;
    2. A significant percentage of refugees arriving under the regular GAR stream are special needs cases;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR call upon CIC and the Québec government to establish a new GAR stream that would provide 2 year financial support to regular GARs with longer-term integration issues: medical problems, single mothers, those with little or no education. The other 2 streams would remain as is.

  • Res.: 8
    Whereas:
    1. Nearly 7 million out of the 11 million worldwide refugee population have been “warehoused”  – confined to camps or segregated settlements or otherwise deprived of basic rights – in situations lasting indefinitely;
    2. Refugee protection is an international responsibility;
    3. There are proposals for a future EXCOM resolution on self-reliance;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR:

    1. Advocate that the future conclusion of UNHCR Executive Committee on “self-reliance” be broadly stated to include such activities as the right to work, practice professions, run businesses, own property, move freely and choose their place for residence and have travel documents.
    2. Advocate that the future conclusion on self-reliance affirm that such rights are integral to UNHCR’s protection mandate.
    3. Advocate that CIDA integrate refugee rights to self-reliance activities into its aid and development programs.
  • Res.: 1
    Whereas:
    1. The CCR has been discussing issues of homophobia and heterosexism since 1996
    2. A resolution was adopted in 2004 to develop a policy;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR:

    1. Accept the Draft Preamble and Application of the Policy, as amended, for full implementation;
    2. Commit to maintaining public education within its membership; 
    3. Compile a Glossary of Terms.
                                                        
  • Res.: 6
    Whereas:
    1. The Canadian government denies seasonal agricultural workers and foreign temporary workers the right to apply for permanent residence status through these programs;
    2. This right is available through the live-in caregiver program;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR demand:

    1. Access to secure permanent resident status for these workers and their families.
    2. Improved working and housing conditions for these workers.
    3. That provincial governments enforce the rights guaranteed to migrant workers under provincial employment and human right laws, rather than abdicating this responsibility to foreign governments.
  • Res.: 11
    Whereas:
    1. Section 25(1) of IRPA grants the Minister broad discretionary authority to exempt an inadmissible person from any provisions of the Act or Regulations, if there are humanitarian and compassionate reasons for doing so;
    2. The Regulations severely restrict this broad discretionary authority by requiring persons who are approved in principle for landing on H&C grounds to meet all admissibility requirements in order to be landed, including medical admissibility;
    3. A person who receives a positive H&C decision and who is found medically inadmissible is refused landing and may face removal from Canada to a place where their life is at risk, or, if granted a temporary resident permit (TRP) for three years, may then be denied provincial health insurance coverage during the three year TRP period and thus face a risk to their life due to inability to access adequate medical care in Canada;
    4. Applying the criterion of medical inadmissibility to a person who has been granted approval in principle on H&C grounds constitutes discrimination contrary to section 15 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and is an improper fettering of the Minister’s discretion under section 25(1) of IRPA;
    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR request an amendment to the Regulations requiring that a person who is granted approval in principle for landing on H&C grounds be exempt from medical admissibility criteria and be landed without delay.

  • Res.: 4
    Whereas:

    Refugees and immigrants on minimum wage are forced to live in poverty;

    Therefore be it resolved:

    That the CCR call on the federal government in all of its contracts to ensure a living wage that at least meets the low income cut-off (LICO) or 60% of the average industrial wage, whichever is higher.