Evidence of meeting #74 for Citizenship and Immigration in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was state.
A video is available from Parliament.
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Absolutely. We are part of that exercise.
Conservative
Ted Opitz Conservative Etobicoke Centre, ON
Would you then not agree that we go a great length to try to create a state for many people who might be stateless as refugees?
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Refugees are not stateless—the majority are not. Some stateless persons may be refugees, and in that case a stateless person who applies for refugee status and is recognized as a refugee.
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
Thank you, Chair.
I want to thank our witnesses for being here and speaking about the importance of our not creating stateless people. I think you did very well in explaining the practical consequences of having stateless persons. I think it is very important to point out the fact that we would be doing that by leaving the legal resident status in this bill.
I have a question. If we were to revoke a person's citizenship because they committed an act of war against us, and one of our allies who also has this policy or law to revoke citizenship—let's say the U.K.—does the same, would that then create a stateless person? Or is there some means to stop that situation from occurring? I don't know if I'm being clear. A person who is a dual citizen of—
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Every country applies its own citizenship and nationality laws in isolation, probably. I don't know if there are discussions of some kind. That may be possible. But for UNHCR, as I said, the basic principle is that acts should not result in statelessness. I don't know how to comment more on this.
NDP
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
I don't know if I was clear. It's just so hypothetical, obviously, because many parts of this bill are very hypothetical at this stage. If I were Canadian and British, and both of these countries can remove citizenship, and I commit an act of war against our ally, Britain, which often fight alongside, then in that case—
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
True. Who would be the—
NDP
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Yes. Who would be the first? I do not have a comment on that. In the case you say, who would be the first, of the two countries—
NDP
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
—to revoke citizenship? I don't think I have an answer to that.
NDP
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
It seems such a very strange situation to be putting ourselves in. Could a person be stateless and remain in Canada if they were here?
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Stateless persons do remain in Canada.
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
There are situations that our office is actually working on together with Citizenship and Immigration Canada. We are working with the government to try to find solutions for persons who are stateless—and they do remain in Canada. They come to Canada through the refugee program. They have not been recognized as refugees, and so they remain in Canada as failed asylum seekers, failed refugees. But then of course they cannot be removed.
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Of course, there is no place to which they can be removed. So as part of its 1961 mandate obligations, UNHCR is contacting the government to try to find a solution, because these people are without rights in Canada, at the margin of society, who cannot be removed.
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
So this is exactly our work on the prevention of statelessness, which we are doing together with the government.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative David Tilson
Thank you, sir. Thank you, Your Excellency.
Ms. Williamson, I'm afraid that our time has expired.
On behalf of the committee, I would like to thank you for attending today and giving your comments. We appreciate them very much. Thank you.
Representative in Canada, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.