Tories cleaning up Liberals' refugee board 'mess': Harper
Patrick_Ross @ Fri Mar 02, 2007 12:21 am
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2007/03/ ... arper.html
$1:
Tories cleaning up Liberals' refugee board 'mess': Harper
Prime Minister Stephen Harper brushed off criticism Thursday that he's politicizing the appointment process of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board, instead saying his government is cleaning up the Liberals' mess.
During question period, Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion and deputy leader Michael Ignatieff accused Harper of wanting to stack the board with Tory loyalists after five members of an advisory panel in charge of hiring new members stepped down.
The resigning members were unhappy that Immigration Minister Diane Finley plans to appoint two of the seven members on the panel. The resigning panel members warned the move would politicize the board.
Tories accused of 'campaigning'
Harper has faced similar criticism for recent changes to the judicial selection process.
"This isn't leadership, this is bullying," Ignatieff said. "And it's not governing, it's campaigning."
But Harper said his government is putting in place a new selection system "so we don't have what we had before."
The prime minister said that under the Liberals, the former husband of one MP was appointed to the board, a husband of another MP was also appointed and a number of members were targeted by serious allegations and criminal charges.
"That's the mess we're cleaning up. That's the Liberal culture of entitlement and we're getting rid of it," Harper said.
Chairman resigned
Last week, the chairman of the refugee board resigned with just eight months left in his five-year term. News reports said Jean-Guy Fleury said it was time for new leadership at the refugee board.
While Fleury was handing in his resignation, the five members of the board's advisory panel also stepped down.
The Immigration and Refugee Board is a tribunal that makes decisions on refugee claims made from inside Canada.
The board also holds detention reviews, hears appeals on immigration issues, and holds hearings on whether people may enter or remain in Canada.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper brushed off criticism Thursday that he's politicizing the appointment process of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board, instead saying his government is cleaning up the Liberals' mess.
During question period, Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion and deputy leader Michael Ignatieff accused Harper of wanting to stack the board with Tory loyalists after five members of an advisory panel in charge of hiring new members stepped down.
The resigning members were unhappy that Immigration Minister Diane Finley plans to appoint two of the seven members on the panel. The resigning panel members warned the move would politicize the board.
Tories accused of 'campaigning'
Harper has faced similar criticism for recent changes to the judicial selection process.
"This isn't leadership, this is bullying," Ignatieff said. "And it's not governing, it's campaigning."
But Harper said his government is putting in place a new selection system "so we don't have what we had before."
The prime minister said that under the Liberals, the former husband of one MP was appointed to the board, a husband of another MP was also appointed and a number of members were targeted by serious allegations and criminal charges.
"That's the mess we're cleaning up. That's the Liberal culture of entitlement and we're getting rid of it," Harper said.
Chairman resigned
Last week, the chairman of the refugee board resigned with just eight months left in his five-year term. News reports said Jean-Guy Fleury said it was time for new leadership at the refugee board.
While Fleury was handing in his resignation, the five members of the board's advisory panel also stepped down.
The Immigration and Refugee Board is a tribunal that makes decisions on refugee claims made from inside Canada.
The board also holds detention reviews, hears appeals on immigration issues, and holds hearings on whether people may enter or remain in Canada.
ridenrain @ Fri Mar 02, 2007 7:07 am
On this mornings radio, they mentioned some deportation hearing for some Chinese "businessmen" who transfered some large ammount of government money out of China into some temporary Canadian businesses. Are these the sort of immigrants the Liberals are defending?
There it is:
$1:
Chinese brothers seized in connection with alleged $100-million embezzlement
Siblings join ex-banker Gao Shan awaiting hearing
PETTI FONG AND GEOFFREY YORK
VANCOUVER, BEIJING -- The two Chinese brothers who allegedly masterminded the embezzlement of more than $100-million from a bank in China have been arrested by Canadian authorities in Vancouver.
Li Dongzhe, 40, and Li Donghu, 38, are scheduled to appear today at an immigration detention review. Their arrest came two weeks after authorities picked up Bank of China manager Gao Shan, who is also accused of being involved in the enormous fraud.
Immigration officials and Chinese police allege the three men were part of a group that transferred about $136-million out of banks and into bogus Canadian companies.
In immigration documents obtained by The Globe and Mail, the Chinese Public Security Bureau said all three men fled to Canada between Dec. 30 and Dec. 31, 2004, one week before the police in the city of Harbin filed notice it was investigating them. The Li brothers arrived in Canada on visitors' visas, which have since expired.
Siblings join ex-banker Gao Shan awaiting hearing
PETTI FONG AND GEOFFREY YORK
VANCOUVER, BEIJING -- The two Chinese brothers who allegedly masterminded the embezzlement of more than $100-million from a bank in China have been arrested by Canadian authorities in Vancouver.
Li Dongzhe, 40, and Li Donghu, 38, are scheduled to appear today at an immigration detention review. Their arrest came two weeks after authorities picked up Bank of China manager Gao Shan, who is also accused of being involved in the enormous fraud.
Immigration officials and Chinese police allege the three men were part of a group that transferred about $136-million out of banks and into bogus Canadian companies.
In immigration documents obtained by The Globe and Mail, the Chinese Public Security Bureau said all three men fled to Canada between Dec. 30 and Dec. 31, 2004, one week before the police in the city of Harbin filed notice it was investigating them. The Li brothers arrived in Canada on visitors' visas, which have since expired.
source
SJ-24 @ Fri Mar 02, 2007 9:32 am
A history of governments shows that all of them have always given trusted friends of the party a position on boards. What is different in this is the obvious over stacking of boards to ensure the "Liberal" view is the only view. In the case of the refugee boards, its very important that those making decisions have a view that everyone coming in front of them should prove why they deserve to be let in, not the government prove why they should be kept out.
The Liberal approach is wrong. Canada needs to adopt the Australian immigration policy, which they just made even more intense to get through , but opened it from capping at age 50 to age 60. This ten year leap will allow older people in, which is un-usual, but they feel they can get more educated people applying, therefore lowering the un-employment problems they currently have amoung the immigrant population. Canada just lets in the rift raft and our social support just gets more and more burdened. Time to change the focus from the uneducated welfare types to the educated and capable types. Just yesterday I read a news item about Alberta going to Germany to bring in educated and trained workers for the oil patch. Notice how they didn't go to Pakistan! 
I guess all Pakistan had to offer was bomb makers and suicide bombers....We leave those qualifications to the Liberal immigration board to OK. Rednecks just want them capable of doing more than that!
Lets face it people, the Liberals and DNP want to kill Canadians while the Conservatives want to save them! 