I would like to thank the members of the committee for the invitation to speak on this very important topic.
In preparation for today, I have both spoken with other service providers and reflected upon the experiences of the people I've had the privilege of working with.
Chairperson, the delays in processing through immigration offices, both in Canada and in our visa offices abroad, are having a dire effect on the mental health of families asking for our help.
Legal Assistance of Windsor is a legal aid-funded clinic, where social workers, social work students, lawyers and law students provide a range of services to our community. As a community heavily enriched by immigration over the past 50 years, we work closely with newcomers, migrant workers, survivors of human trafficking and refugee claimants on their settlement in Canada and in reuniting them with their families.
An issue I would like to raise today is the processing of dependent family members of protected persons. As of Friday, October 28, the average processing time for protected persons applying for permanent residence was 21 months. This 21 months is in addition to the time involved in the processing of refugee claims.
Essentially, families who have experienced violence and separate due to persecution are waiting years to be reunited through the immigration process. In the meantime, separated family members abroad often face the same danger that led their relatives to flee.
Of particular concern in my practice is the experience of women who have faced intimate partner violence and were forced to leave their children behind to seek safety. Facing extreme violence, women leave without their children due to custody issues, the inability to apply for passports or the limited resources available to women with children who are fleeing abusive partners and seeking safety.
During the years of status determination and the 21 months of permanent residence processing, children remain vulnerable to ongoing violence by the abusive partners or the extended family members. The delay provides the opportunity for abusers to use children to exert continuous coercive control over the victim. Fleeing to Canada has prevented physical violence from continuing, but delays in processing allow for psychological coercion and control to continue and, in some situations, for physical violence to be transferred from the mother to her children.
The anguish our clients experience creates additional strains on their capacity to restart their lives in Canada. Many contemplate returning to face their persecutors and protect their children. As you can imagine, others live with feelings of extreme guilt while awaiting the outcome of their applications. All struggle with the negative mental health effects of knowing their families are in danger. We cannot expect symptoms of trauma to lessen and heal when we know the people we love are experiencing the violence once perpetrated upon us.
The lasting damage to relationships cannot always be repaired, leading to higher rates of divorce and separation. Children, especially those who were separated during the developing years and who have witnessed or experienced abuse, often have difficulties in forming lasting relationships with their families after arrival. The trauma of violence and the extended delays in obtaining safety are impacting the mental health of two generations.
What is so disheartening is that many of the administrative delays are unnecessary. Our clients have been asked to provide duplicate forms in addition to the forms filled out by the principal applicant in Canada. Extended security screenings for principal applicants delay the issuing of permanent resident visas for children who would not be subject to such security screenings anyway.
The limited options available to separated families, such as a temporary resident permit, are rarely available. Visa officers continue to refuse such applications, despite evidence of immediate dangers posed to separated family members, even to children living in their own country of origin. In many cases, visa officers still consider lack of family ties in the country of origin as a deciding criteria in refusing a visitor visa, even where clear evidence of humanitarian considerations is provided.
We recommend that this committee consider, under Canada's humanitarian obligations, the effect such policies have on families. As a country that prides itself on understanding the importance of mental health for a productive and fair society, we ask that unnecessary delays—delays negatively impacting the mental health of refugees and their families—be removed.
Thank you.