The heartbreaking situation highlights deeper border control issues between Canada and the U.S. according to migrant advocate Syed Hussan, executive director of the Migrant Workers Alliance for Change.
"The question we need to ask is, why are people fleeing Canada to go to the United States?" Hussan told CTV New Channel on Saturday. "Why are migrants not able to just live here with justice and dignity and equality?"
The people found in the river were part of two families, one of Romanian descent and the other of Indian origin. Police said Friday they were likely trying to enter the U.S. illegally. The bodies, which haven't been officially identified, were found in Tsi Snaihne (Snye) in Akwesasne, a Mohawk territory that straddles Quebec, Ontario and New York state.
Hussan says people likely flee illegally across the border because they face difficulties accessing permanent residency in Canada, among other things.
"Prime Minister Trudeau in December 2021 at the start of this current mandate, promised permanent resident status for migrant students and workers and undocumented people," Hussan said. "Because he knows that that is the only way to ensure equal rights, 15 months later, we have not seen an inclusive regularization program."
He adds migrants will be less likely to flee if a path to permanent residency is created.
"People are being abused at work, exploited by landlords, separated from their families, denied health care, and a few of them are making this dangerous journey to the U.S. and are dying," he said.
Hussan is fearful the shocking news of migrant deaths will become normalized.
"What I'm scared of is that this will turn from news into current affairs," he said.
Recently, the U.S. and Canada agreed to end a loophole in the Safe Third Country Agreement which means asylum seekers will be turned away at irregular border crossings like at Roxham Road in Quebec. Federal figures show more than 39,000 people claimed asylum after crossing into Canada by land in 2022, with most coming through Quebec.
A 'truly innocent' engaged couple was shot dead while attempting to flee their attacker outside their home after a landlord-tenant dispute escalated on Saturday night, according to police.
Turkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan won reelection Sunday, extending his increasingly authoritarian rule into a third decade in a country reeling from high inflation and the aftermath of an earthquake that levelled entire cities.
The historic impeachment of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was just the first round of a Republican brawl over whether to banish one of their own in America's biggest red state after years of criminal accusations.
Less than two months after he pleaded guilty to storming the U.S. Capitol, Texas resident Daniel Goodwyn appeared on Tucker Carlson's then-Fox News show and promoted a website where supporters could donate money to Goodwyn and other rioters whom the site called 'political prisoners.'
Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley held a major rally in downtown Calgary Saturday morning, while her United Conservative rival had no public events planned this weekend after a final pitch to voters a day earlier.
Convicted murderer Daniel Jolivet, in prison for the past 30 years, has maintained his innocence since the day he was arrested. W5 reviews the evidence he painstakingly assembled while behind bars.
W5 Producer Shelley Ayres explains how she was in awe to meet what the Guinness Book of World Record's has named the World's Tallest Teenager, a 17-year-old from Quebec who plays for Team Canada.
CTV W5 investigates what authorities knew about plans to smuggle cocaine out of the Dominican Republic on a Toronto-bound Pivot Airlines flight. The airline's crew is demanding justice following their eight-month detention.
Gordie Sampson has written hit songs for some of the biggest names in country music, including Carrie Underwood and Luke Bryan. CTV W5 speaks with the Grammy winner from small-town Nova Scotia about his creative process.
A CTV W5 investigation reveals that a critical shortage of volunteer firefighters in this country is having a potentially deadly impact, especially in rural Canada.
Sandie Rinaldo tells the story of the largest Black military unit in Canadian history, whose members had to fight to serve for Canada in the First World War as they faced rampant racism at home.
A 'truly innocent' engaged couple was shot dead while attempting to flee their attacker outside their home after a landlord-tenant dispute escalated on Saturday night, according to police.
There was an entire operation set up by the Ottawa Hospital, only steps from the finish line for Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend with more than 100 health professionals ready for anything that could go wrong this weekend.
Ottawa Tourism President Michael Crockatt says Ottawa's tourism sector is "recovering faster that we forecast that we would," as events like the Canadian Tulip Festival and Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend attract big crowds to Ottawa.
The Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend wrapped up on Sunday, with more than 27,500 runners competing in the two days of events through the streets of Ottawa and Gatineau.
On Tuesday, Minden, Ont. business owners will plead to the Ford government to grant the community a one-year moratorium on the closure ahead of the June 1 planned closure date.
A "community-led" referendum is asking thousands of Ontarians to weigh in on whether the privatization of the province's healthcare system is good for the future.
Rania Mukhtar is still processing her recent trip to Sudan, which was interrupted by the outbreak of military conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Ager Hasan being found guilty of second-degree murder, a Cambridge woman climbing Mount Everest, and free tuition for some First Nations students round out the most-read stories of the week.
A 'truly innocent' engaged couple was shot dead while attempting to flee their attacker outside their home after a landlord-tenant dispute escalated on Saturday night, according to police.
The Ontario Health Coalition started a referendum in April, asking people to choose whether they want public hospital services privatized to for-profit hospitals and clinics.
A 'truly innocent' engaged couple was shot dead while attempting to flee their attacker outside their home after a landlord-tenant dispute escalated on Saturday night, according to police.
A 'truly innocent' engaged couple was shot dead while attempting to flee their attacker outside their home after a landlord-tenant dispute escalated on Saturday night, according to police.
With hot weather forecasted across Quebec this week, the province's forest fire agency is advising the public not to light outdoor fires until at least Thursday.
Two women are dead and three people, including children, are injured after a head-on vehicle crash in Quebec's Eastern Townships on Saturday night. The collision occurred at about 11:45 p.m. near Farnham, about 60 kilometres southeast of Montreal.
It's a joyous day for Eve, resident falcon at the Université de Montreal: her babies are hatching. The event is being live-streamed on Sunday from a nest box atop the 23rd floor of a tower on campus.
Residents of a subdivision in Upper Tantallon, N.S., are being evacuated from their homes Sunday afternoon as crews respond to a large fire in the residential area that continues to spread.
Firefighters from the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Renewables are also fighting a fire in a wooded area in Lower Sackville, N.S., between Second Lake and Sackville Lakes Provincial Park.
Both Smith and Notley agree the vote will be one of the most consequential in decades, featuring two leaders in their 50s who have been both premier and Opposition leader.
Thousands of runners laced up their shoes and toed the line for the 59th annual Calgary Marathon Calgary Marathon on Sunday, including a 92-year-old rookie, a pair of world record setting runners handcuffed to each other, and a Ukrainian runner who paid tribute to her homeland.
Fire activity in Alberta picked up overnight Saturday, with Alberta Wildfire counting 57 wildfires Sunday afternoon, including 17 which were classified as out of control.
Both Smith and Notley agree the vote will be one of the most consequential in decades, featuring two leaders in their 50s who have been both premier and Opposition leader.
Friends, family and supporters met at the bottom of Walterdale Hill for a walk honouring Lauren Jarvis and to raise money for the Victims of Homicide Support Society.
Fire activity in Alberta picked up overnight Saturday, with Alberta Wildfire counting 57 wildfires Sunday afternoon, including 17 which were classified as out of control.
The Donnie Creek wildfire burning north of Fort St. John, B.C. has grown to nearly 136,000 hectares after high temperatures and winds Saturday caused the fire to spread, according to BC Wildfire Service. As a result, many are being told to leave their homes
Leaner snowpack in Western Canada and United States mountain ranges is causing drier summers and increasing wildfire risk, says a new study from the University of Colorado Boulder.
One of the so-called godfathers of artificial intelligence says governments need to move faster on regulations to protect against the dangers of the rapidly advancing technology, before it poses a larger threat to humanity.
With just four weeks left until the House of Commons breaks for the summer, the weekly panel of political strategists on CTV's Question Period says it's likely time for the prime minister to shuffle his cabinet.
Almost a year before the closure of 24 Sussex Drive due to disrepair and an infestation of rodents, the chairman of the National Capital Commission's board of directors warned that further delaying a cabinet decision on the fate of the residence would put the whole structure at risk.
Allergies in both children and adults have definitely been on the rise over the last several years, much of the rise in allergies and asthma 'can be directly linked to climate change,' experts say.
It is a world wrapped in mystery - the seventh planet from the sun, Uranus, seen up close just once nearly four decades ago by a passing NASA probe and still warily guarding its secrets.
Egypt unearthed human and animal mummification workshops as well as two tombs in the ancient burial ground of Saqqara, officials said on Saturday, marking the latest in a string of discoveries that the country hopes can help revive its vital tourism industry.
France confirmed its aim to launch a vaccination program against bird flu in the autumn after results from a series of tests on the vaccination of ducks showed 'satisfactory effectiveness,' the farm ministry said.
Several Jewish groups, politicians and an alliance of civil society groups gathered for a memorial ceremony and a protest rally against a concert by Roger Waters in Frankfurt on Sunday evening.
Dedicated fans of 'Succession' are locking in plans to watch the whopping 88-minute finale while turning online for emotional support, memes and endless theories about how the show could end and who will prevail.
Mortgage delinquencies are expected to rise by more than one-third of current levels over the next year, according to some economists. If you anticipate being unable to make your payments and decide to sell your home, here's what an expert says you should consider.
A new report is casting doubt on the idea that Canada is facing a widespread labour shortage and bolsters the arguments by some labour economists that high job vacancies aren't due to a shortage of workers.
As Elizabeth Holmes prepares to report to prison next week, the criminal case that laid bare the blood-testing scam at the heart of her Theranos startup is entering its final phase.
It's a joyous day for Eve, resident falcon at the Université de Montreal: her babies are hatching. The event is being live-streamed on Sunday from a nest box atop the 23rd floor of a tower on campus.
The Toronto Blue Jays took another step toward a turnaround at the end of a rough month, posting their first series win in four ties in well-rounded fashion.
Nottingham Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi capped his strong end to the season with a sixth goal in four games in a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace in the final round of the Premier League on Sunday.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans, the world's most famous endurance race, will be open to hydrogen-powered cars starting in 2026, Pierre Fillon, the president of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest, said Saturday.
A Tennessee company is refusing demands from U.S. regulators to recall millions of vehicles due to airbag inflators that can explode and shoot shrapnel into drivers. While cases are rare, there has been at least one death in Canada, where officials lack the authority to demand a similarly sweeping recall.
Defending Formula One champion Max Verstappen produced a superb final lap to take pole position at the Monaco Grand Prix on Saturday and deny Aston Martin veteran Fernando Alonso his first pole in 11 years.
