Citizenship

that the CCR calls for:

1. The immediate suspension of the enforcement of a removal order against any foreign national who came to Canada as a child and spent any period of their childhood in the care of a child welfare agency or foster family, or in kinship care.
2. An expedited pathway to permanent resident status through a public policy under s. 25.2 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act for any foreign national in Canada who came to Canada as a child and spent any period of their childhood in the care of a child welfare agency, foster family or kinship care.
3. An expedited Temporary Resident Permit and accompanying work or study permit and for the waiving of any associated fees, for any foreign national in Canada who came to Canada as a child and spent any period of their childhood in the care of a child welfare agency, foster family or kinship care, where permanent resident status cannot immediately be granted.
4. An amendment to the Citizenship Act to recognize as a citizen any foreign national who came to Canada as a child and spent any period of their childhood in the care of a child welfare agency, foster family or kinship care.

that the CCR call upon the Canadian government to:

1. Ensure the administration of the citizenship regime conforms with the Act to:
   1. Reduce the language and knowledge requirements to the “adequacy” required;
   2. Ensure broad compassionate discretion in the assessment of waivers from language and knowledge requirements, and eliminate the Medical Opinion Form.

2.  Amend the Citizenship Act to:
   1. Remove the English/French language requirement for writing the citizenship exam
   2. Revert to the ability of citizenship applicants to challenge a refusal in Federal Court as of right, given the importance of the rights at stake.
   3. Eliminate the fee.

that the CCR:

1. Call on federal, provincial and territorial governments to:
   1. Move quickly to allow newcomers to understand and affirm the treaty relationship by implementing Calls to Action #93 and #94;
   2. Develop strategies in consultation with Aboriginal governments to ensure their implementation, and provide resources‎;  
2. Call on federal, provincial, territorial and Aboriginal governments to implement in a timely manner all the other TRC Calls to Action 

that the CCR take the position that citizenship laws and policies must:

1. Respect the principle that all citizens are equal.
2. Embrace newcomers and encourage them to quickly become full participating members of our society.
3. Recognize the barriers that some newcomers face to full participation, including the particular barriers faced by refugees who have suffered persecution and long years of deprivation.
4. Respect the principle that citizenship is a status from which rights derive, and is thus similar to our status as human beings. It is not something that can be lost through behaviour.
5. Have clear and transparent criteria about acquisition and loss of citizenship.
6. Ensure that individuals have access to a fair hearing before an independent decision-maker, with the right of appeal. Decisions should not be made on a discretionary basis by the Minister.

that the CCR call on the government of Canada to redress this gap by ensuring newcomers are made aware of their role and responsibilities as treaty peoples by using vehicles, such as:

• a mandatory component of the LINC/CLIC curriculum;
• comprehensive treaty information in the newcomers guide by CIC, “Welcome to Canada: What you should know”;
• comprehensive treaty information in the citizenship study guide by CIC, “Discover Canada: The rights and responsibilities of citizenship”;
• amending the Canadian citizenship oath to include commitment to uphold treaties with First Peoples.

That the CCR urge its members to:

1. Actively encourage more civic participation by immigrants and refugees;
2. Explore the development of programming to facilitate this goal.

That the CCR:

1. Ask the Government of Canada to accept requests from survivors or the families of victims for a full independent public inquiry into their cases and the conditions surrounding their arrest, removal to torture and the role of the Canadian officials.
2. Urge the US government to make a similar public inquiry into the cases of Canadian citizens returned to torture.
3. Request that the Canadian public inquiry have the utmost transparency with the aim of shedding light on the role of Canadian officials in protecting Canadian citizens and verifying the methods of torture used against our fellow-citizens overseas and on the role of other governments in subjecting Canadians to torture or other cruel and unusual treatment.
4. Promote Canada's working towards the non-derogable right of every human person not to be sent to torture.
5. Urge that, even in extreme cases of security suspicion, Canadian citizens overseas be returned to Canada for further investigation and possible prosecution rather than sent to torture.
6. Appeal to the Canadian government to play an effective role in rehabilitation, redress and compensation in the cases of Canadian citizens who have been tortured overseas.
7. Petition the Government of Canada to take all necessary steps to maintain Canadian global leadership in the exposure, prevention and eradication of torture and the need for its absolute prohibition.
8. Ask the Government of Canada to take immediate diplomatic, economic and political action against governments that have tortured and will torture Canadian citizens or send them to torture.
9. Solicit the Government of Canada to use regional and intergovernmental agencies, where possible, such as the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the UN Committee Against Torture and the UN Committee on Human Rights to object to the treatment of Canadian citizens overseas.
10. Encourage the Canadian Government to take immediate action to intervene in the cases of all Canadians who are languishing in overseas jails and are subjected to torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.

That the CCR urge the Canadian government to protect Canadian citizens overseas against torture and cruel and unusual treatment and provide them with the right to return with no discrimination whatsoever.