Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Law Firm Blog

Meeting the Minister of Immigration, Refugees, Citizenship Canada Ahmed Hussen

I was invited to attend at the Minister of Immigration Refugees Citizenship Canada Roundtable to discuss settlement levels and whether IRCC has struck the right balance between immigration classes (economic and non-economic) and programs. I was invited last year to discuss similar policy issues and objectives with the previous Minister (The Honourable John McCallum). Both invitations for my attendance were due to Member of Parliament Darshan Kang. MP Kang and I have known each other for some time. As in the South Asian/Punjabi custom I simply call him "uncle." He is held in high esteem within the South Asian community in Calgary. Being a Liberal in Conservative Alberta, that is, to quote Clarence Darrow is akin to be a stranger in a strange land. Unlike many who saw expediency or opportunism in becoming Conservatives, either provincially or federally, Mr. Kang remained in the Liberal fold. His principled politics and reputation saw him become a Member of the Legislative Assembly for the Provincial Liberal Party. He then surprisingly, remarkably made the decision to run in the Federal Election and became a Liberal Member of Parliament in a sea of Conservative blue. MP Kang is an ardent advocate of immigrants and immigration... Read more →

The Temporary Foreign Worker and Parallels to the Past

It was my pleasure discussing the plight of many temporary foreign workers at the Human Rights Forum a couple of years ago; my speech drawing parallels between the low skill (low wage) temporary foreign workers and those termed 'coolies' from the past is below. Anoush Newman: Hello and good afternoon, everyone. My name is Anoush Newman, and I'm the 2015 director for The Human Rights Forum at the GlobalFest. It is with great pleasure that we welcome you to our 2015 Human Rights Forum. This project was conceived by the GlobalFest Calgary shortly after the city of Calgary signed on as a cosignatory for the Canadian Municipalities Against Racism, Discrimination Declaration. And, since 2007 GlobalFest has been organizing these forums to promote civil liberty and equality, hopefully, leading to less discriminatory practices. We take great pride in the fact that our forum is very unique and unmatched locally and nationally. We believe that with these types of projects that we build liberal democratic society to protect the rights of all the members of the community. Although we live in one small corner of this great nation, but we are greatly affected by global issues, issues that might be considered too... Read more →

A Lifetime of Lies but (Humanitarian) Relief at Long Last

*Note names and other identifying details have been changed to protect my client’s privacy Mandeep first came to my office two years ago. What he told was surprisingly and saddening. Satvinder, his father, came to Canada in the early 90’s sponsored by his sibling as a single sibling (an option under the former Immigration Act) - this was to be the initial lie. In reality he was already married and he and his wife Pammy already had Mandeep (Mandeep was just a toddler when his father came to Canada). Satvinder turned around and sponsored Pammy, showing their marriage took place after his landing in Canada (the second lie). Pammy arrived in Canada quickly, about a year later, leaving Mandeep behind with family. The problem of course was then Mandeep (who was obviously older than the changed date of the marriage) and how to bring him to Canada. Lies have a tendency to multiply. One lie needs other lies, and inevitably one lie leads to another and yet another. Mandeep was "adopted" by his own parents by way of a Deed of Adoption and sponsored to Canada. This fraudulent adoption was refused; there was an interview in Delhi with Mandeep and... Read more →

The BNP is (Not) a Terrorist Organization

Immigration authorities made the allegation that my client (a young man, a foreign national in Canada) was inadmissible under paragraph 34(1)(f) of the IRPA - that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) (of which he is a member) is an organization that has engaged in the subversion by force of the Bangladeshi government and has engaged in terrorism. When I first reviewed the Minister's admissibility package, I was somewhat taken aback. Politics on the subcontinent, particularly Bangladesh and Pakistan are rough-and-tumble affairs. As a former Refugee Protection Officer, I reviewed hundreds of refugee stories. Details became blurred with PPP members fearing the PML, Awami League or AL members fearing the BNP, and a whole host of other acronyms (JKLF, etc. popping up) and, with changes in government, allegations of harm, violence being reversed. It never crossed our minds back then to invoke s.34 against whole political parties notwithstanding the violence perpetuated by individual "goons". We certainly did it for other, limited, brutal organizations such as the SSP. The fact of the matter is that relations between the Awami League (now in power) and the BNP are deeply bitter and vituperative. It looks like it has crossed someone's mind because this is... Read more →

So You Want to Be a Lawyer

This is advice that I'm not sure I'm qualified to give; or, perhaps, it's that any such advice should be accepted for what it is, and with a grain of salt. My own path to the law and my approach to the practice of law will necessarily be different, and specific to myself and my time. I was exposed to the barrister tradition of the law at a relatively young and impressionable age and that too in a moment of great stress for myself and my family. To paraphrase Dershowitz, lawyers tend to hero-worship and advice should be suspect given that the one offering it often wants the recipient to follow in his or her own footsteps. But the profession seems as popular as ever. Perhaps lawyer-aspirants are still swayed by media or film portrayals of lawyers as warriors in the courtroom, striving, seeking and obtaining justice for their clients. Maybe they're swayed by the glamour of law or perceptions of law as a means to an end or an end unto itself for raking in hand over fist money. My first thought is that all lawyer-aspirants needs to understand that there's little glamour, but unremitting hard work and you... Read more →