Citizenship Minister's Wikipedia Site Edits Section on Gay Rights, Removes Lost Canadians

Visitors to the Wikipedia site for Canada's Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, may notice some changes to the content over the past two weeks, with a section on gay rights revised to include support of the controversial Citizenship Guide and a section on Lost Canadians removed altogether. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Kenney )

Wikipedia is a self-described "free encyclopedia" that allows contributors to edit content without the permission of the original poster. According to Don Chapman, leader of the Lost Canadians, someone has been editing Kenney's profile to remove politically embarrassing content about Lost Canadians and revising other postings to fit in line with the Conservative Minister's views on sexual orientation.

"We couldn't help but notice the substantial edit to the gay rights section of Kenney's site," says Chapman. "What was once a cursory, one sentence reference to criticism of Canada's new Citizenship Guide by gay rights groups has been expanded to include an entire paragraph of several sentences with quotes in defense of the revised Guide from none other than Marc
Chalifoux of the Historica-Dominion Institute and military historian Jack Granatstein."

But what really surprised Chapman was the outright removal of an entire section on the Lost Canadians on or around March 4, 2010.

"Fortunately, we had a screen shot of the entry so we were able to put the content back on the site today but we're wondering how long it's going to stay there," asks Chapman, whose group has been in a long running battle with Kenney over the citizenship of a growing number of Lost Canadians.

Lost Canadians include Canadian born World War Two veterans, war bride children, children born abroad to Canadians, children born out of wedlock pre-1947, Mennonites, Border Babies and Military Brats. All have had their citizenship taken away through arcane provisions of the Citizenship Act.

Chapman says the removal of the Lost Canadians section on the Minister's Wikipedia site sometime in the last ten days leaves him wondering who is monitoring and revising the site and if they're doing it on the taxpayer's dollar.

Chapman says he doesn't want to waste resources on such petty games, "but since the Minister refuses to deal with the human rights issues of these remaining Lost Canadians, the only choice is to make sure the truth is told on Wikipedia," he said.

___

To see an image of the original posting on Lost Canadians from before March 4, 2010, click here:

To see an image of the re-uploaded Lost Canadian posting from March 15, 2010, click here:

To see an image of the original, one sentence posting on gay rights and the Citizenship Guide, click here:

To see an image of the revised posting on gay rights from March 15, 2010, click here:

To see an image of Kenney's Wikpedia site, after the Lost Canadian posting has been taken down again at 2 am, March 16, 2010, click here:

Halifax Chronicle Herald: Who stands on guard for lost Canadians?

Who stands on guard for lost Canadians?

By MELYNDA JARRATT and DON CHAPMAN
Wed. Mar 10

Click here to read original article in the Halifax Chronicle Herald

We weren’t surprised to see the Harper government take advantage of last week’s throne speech to make an announcement that would appeal to women, since International Women’s Day (March 8) was around the corner.

We were surprised, however, to discover that the Conservative plan to even out the patriarchal playing field consisted, briefly, of striking a parliamentary committee to study proposed changes to our national anthem! Apparently, Stephen Harper was so concerned about gender discrimination in Canada that he wanted to replace "In all thy sons command" with "Thou dost in us command." When it comes to gender discrimination, Stephen Harper has a lot more to be concerned about than five words in our national anthem.

We know of at least 100 Canadian-born men and women, their children and grandchildren whose citizenship is not recognized because of gender discrimination that is openly practised at Canada’s Department of Citizenship and Immigration (CIC). Not only is it a flagrant violation of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and a Supreme Court decision (Benner v. Canada), but it contradicts the spirit of numerous United Nations Conventions on Human Rights to which Canada is a signatory.

If your connection to Canada is through a female Canadian — a grandmother or mother — your application for citizenship will be turned down. But if your connection is male — grandfather or father — welcome aboard.

Here we are, in the second decade of the 21st century, and Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney defends this discriminatory practice, and even endorses it by refusing to change the offending sections of the act.

The victims of this discrimination are young and old, male and female, Canadian-born and foreign-born children of Canadians. They include 83-year-old Quebec-born Second World War veteran Guy Valliere, who died in February 2009 waiting for his citizenship to be recognized; and three-year-old Casey Neal, a cute toddler who was born in the United States and whose application was turned down at Christmas because her Canadian connection is through her grandmother. Yet Casey’s adorable cousin, two-year-old Darcey Miller, who was also born in the U.S., had no problem obtaining Canadian citizenship last year because his connection is through his grandfather.
Senator Lorna Milne, on March 8, 2009, International Women’s Day, raised the issue in the Senate:

Senator Milne: Honourable senators, it is International Women’s Week, in 2009, and this Conservative government is still actively discriminating against women.

Senator Manning: No.

Senator Tkachuk: No.

Senator Milne: … Less than a month ago, a Canadian World War II veteran … died while still disenfranchised in his own country. The only reason for his disenfranchisement is that he was born to a Canadian mother and an American father. Due to the arcane provisions of the Citizenship Act, it is much easier to obtain and regain Canadian citizenship if your relationship to Canada is through a man instead of a woman. Can the leader of the government in the Senate explain why … a father’s family is more important than a mother’s in determining citizenship?

It has been one year since Senator Milne brought up this issue in the Red Chamber and nothing has changed. Can the prime minister explain why, in 2010, Canadian citizens are still being discriminated against on the basis of gender by CIC? And as progressive women and men celebrate women’s achievements during International Women’s Week, can the many activists who know about this issue explain why they have not come to the defence of their sisters and brothers who are the victims of gender discrimination at CIC?

Melynda Jarratt is a historian and authority on Canadian War Brides, who is writing a book on the Lost Canadians. Don Chapman is the leader of the Lost Canadians.

Toronto Star - Zerbisias: Women's Day woes

Published On Wed Mar 10 2010

By Antonia Zerbisias
Living Columnist

To read the original article in the Toronto Star click here

Monday was the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day.

Not that I put much store in that sort of thing.

Not while millions of women and girls around the world are, right now, walking miles for water, scavenging for food, enduring gang rapes, having acid thrown in their faces, being killed for talking to boys, staying out of school for lack of menstrual products, bleeding to death while delivering their sixth child ... Did they know it was International Women's Day?

Oh but hey, in Canada's Parliament, our MPs sure did.

Watching Question Period that afternoon, while the Liberals, NDP and Bloc were firing away at the Conservatives on domestic violence, the repeal of the long-gun registry, maternal health care, EI, seniors' supplements and other "women's issues," I had the feeling that we women had become the equivalent of the Afghan "detainees" torture scandal du jour.

There was even a woman, Victoria MP Denise Savoie, as acting speaker of the house. Hurray.

It sure was nice while it lasted.

True to form, the Conservatives deflected every question.

When Liberal MP Lise Zarac (LaSalle-Émard) brought up how our citizenship laws still discriminate against women – "a child born outside Canada to a Canadian father is entitled to Canadian citizenship, but a child born outside Canada to a Canadian mother does not have that same right'' – Immigration Minister Jason Kenney blamed the previous Liberal government. (When does that blaming get old, anyway?)

When another Liberal MP, Judy Foote (Random-Burin-St. George's) raised how last week's budget had zero for seniors – except for "a seniors' day'' – while Canada is in the midst of "a pension crisis," the Conservative reply focused on "pride in our Canadian military'' and "Paul Martin's old budgets."

What that does for the huge majority of the elderly – women, many of whom raised families and did not accumulate pensions – is, um, zero.

The feisty Nicole Demers of the Bloc came out swinging on the Conservatives' ideologically based "regressive attitude toward abortion and contraception" only to get the usual message-track platitudes from Bev Oda, Minister of International Cooperation.

"(It) is important ... to recognize that Canada recognizes that women in developing countries need a great deal of help," she replied. "This is why we are ensuring that we are protecting women around the world, particularly in those countries where they see abuse and violence."

Yes, well, maybe they would be less subject to violence if they had some reproductive choices. Maybe they could get some schooling and gain some economic independence instead of being tied to abusive husbands from the age of 12 or 14.

Which brings us to the Conservatives' much-vaunted – by the Conservatives anyway – support for women's shelters.

Yes, it's welcome but ...

These funds, which Minister of State for the Status of Women Helena Guergis has been famously flying around to disburse, have come at the expense of women's advocacy organizations that have fought against the kinds of discrimination that women face in the first place. The kind of discrimination which can often lead to violence in the home because women don't have access to daycare or decent paying jobs so they can get themselves and their children out.

Yet, claimed Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Monday, "We have taken measures to combat violence against women.''

Such as?

Meanwhile, women's shelter workers have been silenced on the subject. Sure as shooting, they aren't going to speak out for fear of losing their funding.

See how that works?

And did you like how they played us all with that gender-neutral "O Canada" business, now being blamed by Conservative supporters on "the feminists?"

Yeah, it was a great day all right.

Now, until next year, it's off to the back benches and back of the bus with you ladies.

Antonia Zerbisias is a Living section

columnist. azerbisias @ thestar.ca.

She blogs at thestar.blogs.com

Daily Gleaner: Gender discrimination in citizenship act

Published Tuesday March 9th, 2010
A5 By MELYNDA JARRATT & DON CHAPMAN
For The Daily Gleaner

Senators, members of the Supreme Court, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Jean-Daniel Lafond listen to Governor General Michaëlle Jean deliver the speech from the throne in the Senate chamber on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on March 3. Columnists Melynda Jarratt and Don Chapman are disappointed the speech did not address what they see as discrimination within the country’s citizenship rules. They say the act limits immigrants whose connection to Canada is through female family members.

Click here to read original article in the Daily Gleaner

With International Women's Week approaching, we weren't surprised to see the Harper government take advantage of Governor General Michaëlle Jean's speech from the throne to make an announcement that would appeal to women.

We were surprised, however, to discover that the Conservative plan to even out the patriarchal playing field consisted of striking a Parliamentary Committee to study proposed changes to our national anthem!

While he has since abandoned that idea, Stephen Harper was so concerned about gender discrimination in Canada that he wanted to replace "In all thy son's command" with "Thou dost in us command."

We suggest that when it comes to gender discrimination, Harper has a lot more to be concerned about than five words in our national anthem.

Right now, we know of at least 100 Canadian-born men and women, their children and grandchildren whose citizenship is not being recognized because of gender discrimination that is openly practiced at Canada's Department of Citizenship and Immigration (CIC).

Not only is it a flagrant violation of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms, but it contradicts the spirit of numerous United Nations Conventions on Human Rights to which Canada is a signatory.

This is how it works: if your connection to Canada is through a female Canadian - a grandmother or mother - your application for citizenship will be turned down.

But if your Canadian connection is male - grandfather or father - welcome aboard.

No politician today would dare support gender discrimination against Canadians and expect to win an election, but here we are, in the second decade of the 21st century, and Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney defends this discriminatory practice and even endorses it by refusing to change the offending sections of the act.

The victims of this gender discrimination run the gamut from young and old, male and female, Canadian-born and foreign-born children of Canadians.

They include 88-year-old Quebec-born Second World War veteran Guy Vallieres, who died in February 2009 waiting for his citizenship to be recognized.

The act also impacts three year-old Casey Neal, a cute little toddler who was born in the United States and whose application was turned down at Christmas because her Canadian connection is through her grandmother.

Yet Casey's adorable little cousin, two-year-old Darcey Miller, who was also born in the United States, had no problem obtaining his Canadian citizenship last year because his Canadian connection is through his grandfather, a male.

Can't believe it? We'll leave it up to Senator Norma Milne, who one year ago on March 8, 2009, International Women's Day, raised the issue in the Senate:

Hon. Lorna Milne: "Honourable senators, it is International Women's Week, in 2009, and this Conservative government is still actively discriminating against women... I will tell you how.

"Less than a month ago, a Canadian World War II veteran - if you want to hear about Canadians who served our country - died while still disenfranchised in his own country.

"The only reason for his disenfranchisement is that he was born to a Canadian mother and an American father.

"Due to the arcane provisions of the Citizenship Act, it is much easier to obtain and regain Canadian citizenship if your relationship to Canada is through a man instead of a woman.

"Can the Leader of the Government in the Senate explain why this Conservative government, in 2009, still holds the view that a father's family is more important than a mother's in determining citizenship?"

It has been one year since Senator Milne brought up this issue in the Red Chamber, and since then, nothing has changed. So we will ask the question again:

Can the prime minister explain why, in 2010, Canadian citizens are still being discriminated on the basis of gender by CIC?

And during International Women's Week, as progressive women and men gather to celebrate women's achievements, can the many activists who know about this issue explain why they have not come to the defense of their sisters and brothers who are the victims of gender discrimination at CIC?

Melynda Jarratt is a Fredericton historian and authority on Canadian War Brides who is writing a book on the Lost Canadians. Don Chapman is the leader of the Lost Canadians.

Who Stands On Guard for Them? Gender discrimination in Citizenship Act punishes applicants with female connection

Three year old Kasey Neal's Canadian citizenship is not recognized because her Canadian connection comes through her grandmother. Meanwhile, her two year old cousin, Darcey Miller, has his Canadian citizenship because his connection is through his grandfather.

With International Women’s Day around the corner we weren't surprised to see the Harper government take advantage of the Speech from the Throne to make an announcement that would appeal to women.

We were surprised, however, to discover that the Conservative plan to even out the patriarchal playing field consists of striking a Parliamentary Committee to study proposed changes to our National Anthem! Apparently, Stephen Harper is so concerned about gender discrimination in Canada that he wants to replace "In all thy sons’ command" with “Thou dost in us command”.

We humbly suggest that when it comes to gender discrimination, Stephen Harper has a lot more to be concerned about than five words in our national anthem.

Right now, we know of at least 100 Canadian born men and women, their children and grandchildren whose citizenship is not recognized because of gender discrimination that is openly practiced at Canada's Department of Citizenship and Immigration (CIC). Not only is it a flagrant violation of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and a Supreme Court decision, (Benner v. Canada) but it contradicts the spirit of numerous United Nations Conventions on Human Rights to which Canada is a signatory.

This is how it works: if your connection to Canada is through a female Canadian - a grandmother or mother - your application for citizenship will be turned down. But if your Canadian connection is male - grandfather or father - welcome aboard.

No politician today would dare support gender discrimination against Canadians and expect to win an election: but here we are, in the second decade of the 21st century, and our Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, defends this discriminatory practice and even endorses it by refusing to change the offending sections of the Act.
Quebec born World War Two veteran Guy Valliere died in February 2009 waiting for his citizenship application to be processed.

The victims of this gender discrimination run the gamut from young and old, male and female, Canadian born and foreign-born children of Canadians. They include 83 year-old Quebec-born World War Two veteran Guy Valliere, who died in February 2009 waiting for his citizenship to be recognized, to three year-old Casey Neal, a cute little toddler who was born in the United States and whose application was turned down at Christmas because her Canadian connection is through her grandmother.

Yet Casey's adorable little cousin, two year old Darcey Miller, who was also born in the United States, had no problem obtaining his Canadian citizenship last year because his Canadian connection is through his grandfather.

Don't believe us? We'll leave it up to Senator Norma Milne, who one year ago on March 8, 2009, International Women’s Day, raised the issue in the Senate:

Hon. Lorna Milne: Honourable senators, it is International Women's Week, in 2009, and this Conservative government is still actively discriminating against women.

Senator Manning: No.

Senator Tkachuk: No.

Senator Milne: Carry on; please do. I will tell you how. Less than a month ago, a Canadian World War II veteran — if you want to hear about Canadians who served our country — died while still disenfranchised in his own country. The only reason for his disenfranchisement is that he was born to a Canadian mother and an American father. Due to the arcane provisions of the Citizenship Act, it is much easier to obtain and regain Canadian citizenship if your relationship to Canada is through a man instead of a woman. Can the Leader of the Government in the Senate explain why this Conservative government, in 2009, still holds the view that a father's family is more important than a mother's in determining citizenship?

It has been one year since Senator Milne brought up this issue in the Red Chamber and since then nothing has changed. So we will ask the question again:

Can the Prime Minister explain why, in 2010, Canadian citizens are still being discriminated on the basis of gender by CIC?

And, on the eve of International Women’s Day, as progressive women and men gather to celebrate women’s achievements, can the many activists who know about this issue explain why they have not come to the defense of their sisters and brothers who are the victims of gender discrimination at CIC?

'Lost Canadians' seek route home; Man urges Canada to fix holes in immigration laws to restore citizenship

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

Canwest News Service
Read original article on line in the National Post

Photo by Ward Perrin, Canwest News Service Files Don Chapman says a child's Canadian citizenship relies heavily on the status of the father, and less so on the mother.

Vancouver-born Don Chapman lost his Canadian citizenship when, while he was a child, his father moved south of the border and became a U.S. citizen. Mr. Chapman's identity was rooted in his father's citizenship, regardless of his mother's.

After years of fighting to have his Canadian citizenship restored, and for the rights of thousands of other so-called Lost Canadians who found themselves jilted by immigration law vagaries, Mr. Chapman won his battle last year. The government enacted a bill that allowed the majority of Lost Canadians to reclaim citizenship. But not all of them.

Thousands of people continue to be shirked status as Canadian citizenship because of loopholes in Canadian law that mean a child's citizenship relies heavily on the status of the father, and less so on the mother, according to Mr. Chapman, an expert on Lost Canadians.

With today being International Women's Day, he says it is high time to fix those holes so people such as himself don't suddenly learn they are not as Canadian as they once believed.

"There are probably thousands of cases. How many do I know of? Not that many, but there are probably thousands" who don't realize they are not Canadian citizens, Mr. Chapman said yesterday.

"There are going to be a lot of people in Canada [who] are going to be affected by this. And no one is quite aware of it."

Don Chapman and Magali Castro-Cyr speak to the media in the House of Commons press room after the passage of Bill S-2, in May 2005. Despite the passage of Bill C-37 three years later, problems still persist for Lost Canadians.

According to documents provided by Mr. Chapman, children born on Canadian soil to foreign fathers and Canadian mothers do not immediately have the right of Canadian citizenship.

As well, while children born outside of Canada to a Canadian father have a right to citizenship, those born to a Canadian mother (but not a Canadian father) do not.

A bill enacted last year ensured that foreign-born children of Canadian mothers are eligible for citizenship. But it did not restore the right to children whose citizenship had been stripped.

A request for clarification to the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration was made yesterday evening, but not returned.

Mr. Chapman says citizenship is predominantly passed down by the father according to the 1977 Citizenship Act, despite the Supreme Court finding it unconstitutional in 1997.

He said that finding is ignored today.

"I would ask the government of Canada to follow the law," Mr. Chapman said, referring to the Supreme Court ruling Benner vs. Canada, which deemed the Citizenship Act as discriminatory to women.

"As a citizen of Canada, am I expecting too much from elected representatives in the government of Stephen Harper to uphold the constitution of Canada?"

Three year old Kasey Neal's citizenship is not recognized because her connection to Canada is through her grandmother.

As an example, Mr. Chapman describes the cases of cousins Lillian Miller and Kasey Neal. Kasey's grandmother is Canadian, but she is not eligible for citizenship. Lillian, however, has a Canadian-born grandfather, and she is.

"It is so confusing that people don't believe me," he said. "They say, 'That can't be right.' "

Read original article on line the National Post

Jack Babcock, Lost and Last Surviving Canadian Veteran of WWI, dies in Spokane, Washington

On Thursday, Jack Babcock, Canada's last surviving veteran of World War One, passed away at age 109 in Spokane, Washington where he lived since moving to the United States in the 1920s.


This interview was recorded in May 2008, after Jack Babcock's Canadian citizenship was restored through the intervention of Canada's Minister of Veterans Affairs, Greg Thompson.

Jack Babcock was a Lost Canadian, having only received his citizenship on May 8, 2008 after a mad scramble by federal politicians, including then Minister of Veterans Affairs, Greg Thompson, when it became apparent that the last Canadian born veteran of WWI was actually an American!

Yes, Jack Babcock was an American, even though he was born in Canada. In fact, Jack was never technically a “Canadian” until May, 2008, because when he was born in 1900 there was no such thing as Canadian citizenship. Yes, we have always called ourselves “Canadians” and considered ourselves “Canadian born”, but we were all British subjects until the introduction of the Canadian Citizenship Act on January 1, 1947.

So when Jack Babcock took an oath of US Citizenship in 1946 he became an American, and when he received a special grant of citizenship in May 2008, he was not becoming a “citizen again” as most media outlets reported. Rather, he was becoming Canadian for the first time.

In the past, when we raised this issue with reporters, the response was that the citizenship issue was such a minor technicality that it didn’t really matter. And, besides, it takes away from a good story.

It may seem like a technicality, but it’s technicalities like that which have worked against numerous Canadian born persons, including veterans of World War Two, who have been told they are not citizens. They certainly don’t get the same treatment as Jack Babcock, and the reasons are abundantly clear.

In 2006, the Dominion Institute launched an on line petition to hold a state funeral for the last veteran of the First World War. Ninety-thousand Canadians responded in three weeks and on November 21 the House of Commons unanimously passed a motion endorsing the move.

By May, 2007, Jack Babcock was the last remaining Canadian born veteran. In April 2008, sensing the urgency of the situation, Greg Thompson paid a special visit to Babcock at his Spokane apartment and asked Jack if he’d like to become a Canadian citizen. Jack said "Yes” and in a two sentence, hand-written note he made it official.

Twenty-one days later, Jack Babcock was a Canadian citizen for the first time in his life and Stephen Harper breathed a sigh of relief. Imagine the embarrassment if Canada’s last veteran of WWI was actually an American!

While we are happy Jack Babcock finally became a Canadian citizen, we are saddened that so many other Canadian born persons have not, including Guy Valliere, a veteran of WWII who died last February disenfranchised.

It was Guy’s fervent wish that he die a Canadian citizen, a promise made by then Minister of Citizenship, Diane Finley. Sadly, it didn't happen, despite the gargantuan efforts of many people, including Members of Parliament from the Liberal, NDP and Bloc Quebecois caucuses who supported Guy in his struggle.

At his funeral, Guy was eulogized as “a man forgotten by his country but acknowledged by the wish to be Canadian.”

Then there is Vancouver-born Kathleen Freemont, who served with the Women’s Division of the RCAF during WWII. She is still not being recognized and at age 88 chances are she may never be.

Marcel Gelinas is another Canadian born veteran of WWII whose citizenship is not recognized. He’s also 88 and time is of the essence.

How does the Canadian government reconcile such different – one might say unequal - treatment of Canadian born citizens? No doubt, we can't all be Jack Babcocks and have the Minister of Veterans Affairs personally visit us with an offer of citizenship. But what part of the word "EQUAL" does the Canadian government not understand?

It behooves Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, to treat all Canadian born persons the same, especially veterans. After all, we have a Charter of Rights and Freedoms that makes it illegal to discriminate, not to mention a number of United Nations Conventions on Human Rights to which Canada is a signatory.

We believe that the special treatment afforded to Jack Babcock, however deserving, should also have been given to Guy Valliere before he died and to WWII veterans Kathleen Freemont and Marcel Gelinas before they are gone too.

After all, equal is equal, and there is no other way around it.

Gov't Discriminates Against Women: Letter to Ruth Wiseman, Citizenship and Immigration Officer for Kasey Neal

Kasey Neal is a two and a half year old girl who is being denied her right to Canadian citizenship because the Department of Citizenship and Immigration permits discrimination on the basis of gender.

In a nutshell, if Kasey's Canadian grandparent was a man, Kasey could become Canadian. But because Kasey's Canadian grandparent is a woman, she is not allowed to become a Canadian.

If it walks like a duck and acts like a duck, I'd say it's a duck, wouldn't you? Looks like discrimination based on gender to me and let the Department of Citizenship and Immigration say it isn't so. They won't, because they know it's true. What I want to know is when will the Department stop discriminating against women?
___

February 7, 2010

Ruth:

The Supreme Court was unanimous in Benner vs. Canada 1997, and the decision still remains in force. It has not been overturned, nor has the notwithstanding clause been implemented by Parliament to change that decision. Once again, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that discriminating in citizenship based on gender was contrary to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and thus unconstitutional. Nothing has changed, Benner remains in force and the acceptance or denial of citizenship based only on gender is illegal and contrary to the Charter. By denying Kasey Neal citizenship you are defying the Supreme Court of Canada.

This case will go to judicial review if you deny Kasey citizenship. Also, expect a class-action lawsuit and lots of hearings before Parliament whereby the bureaucrats will have to explain their actions. I strongly suggest you not go there.

I respectfully ask that Kasey is deemed to be a Canadian citizen from birth. At the very least she should be offered a section 5.4 citizenship grant.

Let me summarize:

My nephew is Kenneth Neal; and previously he was denied Canadian citizenship via lineage on the basis that his Canadian parent, Ruth Pina happens to be female. This is in violation of charter rights as well as the Benner decision. Ken's citizenship has been subsequently restored by the CIC, and it was deemed to have been continuous since his birth in 1971. Now his daughter, Kasey Neal, has been denied citizenship on the grounds that her father was not a citizen at the time of her birth, notwithstanding that the CIC has already acknowledged that her father was in fact a citizen at the time of Kasey's birth. As such, the CIC continues to perpetuate violations of charter rights and the Benner decision in its gender-biased determinations of citizenship, even in the case of Ken's daughter, Kasey.

I cannot be more clear, I expect CIC to recognize the citizenship of Kasey Neal. Let me end by quoting several politicians, including the Prime Minister of Canada, the Minister of State (Status of Women) and finally the Governor General:


"The actions of our government are guided by the principal that hate and discrimination have no place in a civilized society." - Prime Minister Stephen Harper

"We must ensure that women are not discriminated against." - The Honourable Helena Guergis, Minister of State (Status of Women)

"I know that the government and other parties have a commitment to look at all legislation through the lens of its fairness to women. This clearly fails that test--big time." - The Honourable Diane Ablonczy, Minister of State (Seniors)

And one final quote, from Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, "I have always thought that ignoring the plight of women is not only an inexcusable lack of responsibility, but also an unjustifiable crime against humanity."

Don Chapman for Kasey Neal

Case made for Canada's war brides

History: Citizenship denial suggested for inclusion in new human rights museum

Published Friday February 5th, 2010

Click here to read original article in the Telegraph Journal
A1
Adam Huras
Telegraph-Journal

MONCTON - A New Brunswick historian is lobbying for the "worst and most-hidden secret" in Canadian human rights history to figure prominently in the country's newest national museum.


Melynda Jarrett has now delivered what she says is the hidden tale of how war brides and their children have been denied Canadian citizenship, despite living nearly their entire lives in Canada.

A panel that will help determine the first exhibits in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights was in Moncton on Thursday in the last stop of a national tour seeking ideas on what should be included.

"We would like the story of the denial of citizenship to the lost Canadians and, in particular, the war bride children and the war brides that have been stripped of their citizenship, to be part of the museum exhibits," Jarrett said. "It's an untold story of human rights violations that needs to be exposed.

"My role is to explain that (situation) as an embarrassment to Canada's reputation as supposedly a country that respects human rights."

Jarrett, who is also an author and expert on war brides, said there are thousands of war brides and their children that arrived in Canada immediately after the Second World War, prior to the Canadian Citizenship Act of Jan. 1, 1947.

As a consequence, some children of war brides were not registered as citizens.
Roughly 48,000 young women who met and married Canadian servicemen during the Second World War emigrated to Canada in the years immediately afterwards.

Many of their children are just now finding out that they are not registered as citizens as they apply for old age pension.
Jarrett said thousands of people are now stuck in limbo as they search for half-a-century-old proof they have been Canadian all along.

Many cannot leave the country for fear of not being allowed to return.

"This is not to say that the horrible treatment of aboriginal peoples, sexual discrimination, exploitation of children and other human rights issue are not worthy, because they all are," Jarrett said. "But this is another form of virtually unknown discrimination that isn't being heard.

"But behind the curtain is this nefarious discrimination occurring against, of all people, the children of Canada's cultural icons, the Canadian war brides."
Jarrett was accompanied by Zoe Boone, a Scottish war bride from Aberdeen who came to Canada on a Trans-Canada Airlines flight in 1946 and lives on the Tobique.

She was easily granted Canadian citizenship shortly after moving to Canada.

"I was a lucky one," she said. "But I'm here to tell the story of those who now weren't."

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights has held sessions across Canada over the past year to provide all Canadians with the opportunity to help develop the content of the museum.

Located in Winnipeg, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights is Canada's newest national museum with a mission to enhance the understanding of human rights and to promote respect for others.

"People often think that museums focus on the past, they are full of artifacts and stories that are complete," said Angela Currie, a spokeswoman for the museum. "This is an ideas museum which looks at the past as well as the present and future of human rights issues that effect Canadians today."

Delegations pushing for the museum to include the expulsion of the Acadians, the rights battles of disabled people and language rights issues were also represented Thursday in Moncton.

A discussion open to the public was also held Thursday night. Those who missed the sessions can submit their museum ideas online at humanrightsmuseum.ca.
The museum will open in 2012, becoming the country's first national museum more than 40 years.

"To me, the struggle for Canadian citizenship by people who have always considered themselves Canadian is the worst and most hidden secret of our past and present," Jarrett said. "This can no longer stay hidden."

78 Year Old Canadian Not a Citizen: No status, no health card

The daughter of an elderly man who has lived in Canada for 78 years received a shock when she moved him to Quebec - he is not officially a Canadian citizen, so he has no medical coverage

By ANNE SUTHERLAND, The Gazette

Click here to read the original article in the Montreal Gazette.

Howard Webb lived 78 of his 89 years in Nova Scotia, the son of a Canadian mother and a British father.

He has a social insurance number, paid income taxes and received medical care under Nova Scotia's health care plan.

It was a rude awakening, then, when his daughter found out that her dad isn't considered a Canadian citizen and was therefore not eligible for Quebec medicare after he moved to Pointe Claire to be with her in February.

"The Régie (de l'assurance maladie du Québec) told me I needed a passport or Canadian birth certificate to prove he's Canadian; they were very rigid on this point," Christina Guimond said.

"Up to this point, we had never questioned his citizenship - he was Canadian." According to Julie Bilodeau, spokesperson for the RAMQ, the conditions for admissibility for a medicare card are proof of residence in Quebec - a lease, etc. - and some document that identifies the individual as a person authorized to live in Canada.

"That can be a passport, a citizenship certificate or a birth certificate," Bilodeau specified.

Webb's parents were married in Nova Scotia, but Webb was born in Massachusetts in 1920. After his father died in 1931 at the height of the Depression, he and his mother, a Canadian citizen, moved back to Nova Scotia to live with his grandmother and other family members.

He was married for 53 years and fathered four children with his wife, Pearl.

When she fell ill in 2008, was hospitalized and unable to speak, a son who lives in British Columbia flew to Nova Scotia and placed Webb in a retirement home.

Guimond moved him to Montreal in February, shortly before Pearl died. Webb was in poor health and miserable in the retirement home, his daughter said.

"He was crying on the phone, 'Come and get me,' " she said.

His Nova Scotia health care coverage continued for a month after he left the province, but since April Webb has had no medical insurance.

Guimond said she was stunned by the RAMQ's strict rules, and has encountered roadblock after roadblock in her quest to have this matter settled.

"My father never travelled so he had never applied for a passport," she said.

Before 1947, all Canadians were British citizens. Canadian citizenship was created in 1947.

At this point, Webb should have signed papers to reaffirm his Canadian status, but no one had known this was necessary, his daughter said.

Guimond had a difficult job finding her father's birth certificate and her grandparents' 1916 Nova Scotia marriage records to prove her father's status.

With the help of an assistant in the offices of her MP, Francis Scarpaleggia, Guimond applied in August to the federal Citizenship and Immigration offices to get citizenship papers for her father. The process can take 15 months.

Jacqueline Roby, a spokesperson for Citizenship and Immigration Canada, said in cases where there are health concerns, papers can be expedited, sometimes as quickly as within a week.

"Our door is never closed in cases of urgency," Roby said.

Once he has papers making him officially Canadian, Webb will be issued a medicare card, Bilodeau said.

Guimond is concerned the delay might prove too long.

Her father was diagnosed with cognitive impairment and subsequently with Alzheimer's last spring, and his medicine costs $250 a month. Guimond was told she'll be reimbursed when her father's card is issued.

"The anxiety and worry is that he'll trip and fall and possibly die before he gets a card," Guimond said.

"I don't know why the Régie is so adamant, they could be more flexible. Why put an 89-year-old man through this? It serves no purpose."

- - -

'Lost Canadians' number in the thousands

Women who married Canadian soldiers during the Second World War, and any children their union produced, were promised the same citizenship as their husbands by the Canadian government. What many of them did not know was that to obtain citizenship, they had to sign papers to reaffirm their Canadian status - an act that Federal Court Judge Luc Martineau ruled in 2006 was unacceptable since failure to sign those papers stripped them of their citizenship - often without their knowledge.

In 2007, Barry Edmonston, a sociology professor at the University of Victoria, told members of Parliament that an estimated 200,000 people are considered "lost Canadians," stripped of their citizenship between 1947 and 1977.

Studying census figures, Edmonston estimated there are 115,000 people living in Canada who fall into the "lost Canadian" category, and 85,000 living outside Canada.

Of those living in Canada, the largest group includes those born abroad with at least one parent who is Canadian.

In many cases, those born before 1977 are not Canadian citizens because nobody told their parents their birth had to be registered in Canada within two years.

asutherland@ thegazette.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette