Resettled Afghan interpreters protest Ottawa's approach to extract families, remaining colleagues
A group of resettled Afghan interpreters gathered in downtown Ottawa on Tuesday to bring attention to the need for immediate government intervention to help their extended families and former colleagues who remain under threat from the Taliban.
The group of about 100, which also included veterans, brought signs that read “Help: evacuate our people” and “Our work has jeopardized our family members,” in an effort to raise awareness of the dire situation that many in Afghanistan find themselves in.
The Taliban claims it now controls about 80 per cent of Afghanistan after the U.S. began extracting its military forces – a move U.S. President Joe Biden announced will be completed by Aug. 31.
The first group of interpreters that assisted U.S. troops – approximately 220 people – arrived last week. All total, the U.S. has pledged to bring back about 2,500.
The Canadian government has also offered hope to potentially thousands of interpreters, locally engaged staff with the Canadian Embassy and their families who assisted the Canadian Armed Forces on their 10-year deployment.
“Without getting into precise numbers, we do anticipate that the numbers will be in the several thousand,” said Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino when announcing the immigration pathway in late July.
A previous special immigration program settled more than 800 Afghan nationals – many of whom were demonstrating on Tuesday - and their families in Canada from 2009 to 2011 and a revised version of that program began in 2012.
However, veterans, advocates, and family members of those that remain stuck there have argued Ottawa’s newest application process is confusing, restrictive, and too extensive.
The application guidelines, which are written entirely in English, require applicants to gather and fill out at least three lengthy electronic forms that require computer and internet access in 72 hours.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said the three-day timeline was a “mistake.”
“That 72 hours was a mistake, that we put out – actually it’s not going to be 72 hours,” he said last Thursday. “I can assure you that intense planning daily is taking place. I personally get daily briefings on this and things are moving very rapidly so that we can bring home all those Afghans safely.”
The demonstrators said they put their “lives at risk” for Canada and now it’s time for the Canadian government to help.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh commented on the situation on Tuesday, noting that the government’s efforts thus far don’t go far enough to secure these individuals’ safety.
“It’s got to be clear that those that supported us…have to be helped out,” he said, adding that eligibility for the expedited immigration process should be expanded.
“There are a lot of people in Afghanistan that need help and that helped out Canadians and that should qualify for support, should qualify for resettlement to Canada. So I think we need to be very broad in our understanding of the people that have been threatened.”
A government website about the special immigration measures states that applicants must meet all “usual admissibility requirements, including security, criminal and health screenings, and processing timelines will be expedited. Applicants will also be subject to existing COVID-19 public health measures and safety protocols.”
It also notes that due to security reasons, the identity of those being resettled and how they’ll be evacuated will not be made public.
Mendicino has previously stated that anyone confused about eligibility should contact his office directly.
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole says unlike the U.S., Canada is “stonewalling” heroes that served the country and must provide an immediate timeline detailing their plans to remove them.
"Faced with the prospect of life or death, these brave Afghans can't afford more incompetence from the Trudeau government. Justin Trudeau must immediately provide a comprehensive plan with a clear timeline for these Afghans and their families seeking refuge in Canada,” said O’Toole in a statement.
One veteran at Tuesday's rally reccomended that Ottawa process the immigration paperwork while applicants are already in Canada or in a safe third location.
"We need to ensure that we have an efficient process that doesn't rely on heavy paperwork in Afghanistan, we need to do something similar to our allies in other countires that allow Afghans to come here after proper vetting," he said.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
Local Spotlight
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan won't cut hair until Stanley Cup comes to Edmonton
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
UBC football star turning heads in lead up to NFL draft
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Cat found at Pearson airport 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.