An internal Immigration Service document, looking back at the sometimes troubled handling of last year’s 24th International AIDS Conference, proposes the formation of a new special events team.
Documents obtained by The Canadian Press illustrate the difficulties Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada had in working with the International AIDS Society in the run-up to the 24th International AIDS Conference last year. Both organizations wanted to avoid a massive rejection of visas.
On the sidelines of last July’s conference, dozens of delegates from Africa saw their visa applications turned down or unanswered. Some have openly denounced the situation, which they view as racism and believe international meetings should not be held in Canada.
Many guests at the conference have also applied for asylum in Canada. More than one in six guests granted a Canadian visa would have applied, Radio-Canada learned.
Immigration Canada blames the organizers
The Canadian Immigration Services internal document, dated last November, underscores the need for better coordination of high-level events to ensure partners are engaged up front and remain in constant, ongoing and detailed contact.
The same document reveals that there were shortcomings at the immigration authorities themselves, including a technical issue that prevented some participants from including the event code in their registration, which would have allowed for better categorization by the authorities.
However, the document primarily blames the Geneva-based organizers of the conference.
Organizers reportedly provided a list of 6,609 participants six weeks before the event, but did not include any information relevant to identifying visa applications, such as dates of birth and application numbers.
Two weeks later, the immigration authorities requested a priority list (“VIP”). The organizers provided a list of 4,200 names, only to later reduce it to 150 people.
The organizers repeatedly questioned our refusals and requested specific information on a case-by-case basis.
Officials have begun following up individual cases. Meanwhile, immigration authorities continued to receive visa applications in the run-up to the event, although they were required to receive visa applications no less than two weeks before the conference.
Overall, immigration enforcement teams are overwhelmed with the increase in special events and a host of other ongoing priorities, the document said. For this reason it is proposed to form a new team for special events.
Given the situation, immigration authorities have pledged to push harder for event organizers to provide a more complete guest list in the future.
Many asylum applications
Documents obtained through information access laws show that 1,020 visa applications submitted for the 24th International AIDS Conference were rejected, accounting for about 36% of the total. One in ten visa applications was not processed by the end of the event.
In preparation for the summit, Canada issued 1,638 visas. According to official data, 251 of these people applied for asylum in Canada after arriving in the country, or about 15% of them. Radio-Canada estimates that more than 300 asylum applications have been made. These applications are currently under review.
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The International AIDS Conference was held in Montreal from July 29 to August 2, 2022.
Photo: (Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press)
At least 123 of these people are from Uganda, where criminal laws against homosexuality are among the toughest in the world. In addition, 58 people from Kenya and 26 from Nigeria applied.
Robert Blanshay, an immigration attorney in Toronto, says attending a conference or sporting event in Canada is one of the only ways individuals can safely apply for refugee status.
Mr Blanshay said he was not at all surprised by these numbers, adding that the idea of applying for refugee sometimes only crossed his mind once he had arrived in Canada or when he learned that other people were doing it.
Good for you. If this is their only way to seek asylum in a country, then so be it.
The lawyer believes that Canada does not make life easy for people who apply for asylum or visas for legitimate reasons.
These applications are often rejected if the person submitting them cannot show that they have sufficient reasons to remain in their country of residence, such as stable employment, savings and family.
Also in terms of the conference, Ottawa would have rejected 83.5% of visa applications from Nepalese, 55.8% from Nigerians, 53.6% from Pakistanis and more than 40% from Cameroonians, Congolese, Ethiopians and Ghanaians.
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Other Affected Events
This controversy follows many similar incidents that have occurred at international summits in Canada in recent years. Visa applications were denied despite the applicant having received a written invitation on Canadian government letterhead.
For example, the UN Biodiversity Conference last December in Montreal caused a stir in terms of visas.
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Many similar incidents occurred at international summits in Canada, such as COP15.
Photo: Jaela Bernstien/CBC
Hundreds of delegates from “developing countries” have complained that they were unable to attend the meeting because their visas were refused or blocked at a Canadian mission abroad.
Ahead of that meeting, Immigration Secretary Sean Fraser indicated that he had asked immigration officials to waive certain common criteria, such as the applicant’s degree of ability to return home or their ability to support themselves during their stay, as the expenses of several delegates were covered.
Internal data shows that 751 of the 4,167 visa applications, or 18% of applications, were not processed in time for the conference. Of the applications processed, 77% were accepted and 2.9% were rejected.
The data does not indicate whether there were any asylum applications after the conference.
With information from The Canadian Press