The question of dual citizenship in Canada is somewhat of a controversial one. While at the moment it is not the hot-button issue that Black-focused schools or same-sex marriage is, the matter continues to rear its head from time to time. For example, many people have asked whether the federal government should have spent $85 million to evacuate approximately 12,000 Canadian citizens from Lebanon during that country’s conflict with Israel in the summer of 2006. A number of these citizens had not lived in Canada for years, but by virtue of their Canadian passport they were provided with free transportation out of the war-torn nation. To add insult to injury in the minds of many, a considerable proportion of the evacuees eventually returned to Lebanon .
Suggestions poured in as to how to prevent similar situations in future. One radio talk show host said that Canadian citizens living outside the country should be required to pay a $500 fee upon renewing their passport every five years. If they failed to do so, they would lose the privileges that possession of the passport entitled them, such as rescue from disaster zones at no charge. Some Conservative members of government talked about abolishing dual citizenship (this proposal was vigorously opposed by Liberal Member of Parliament Mario Silva, who has among other things spoken out against the rule that no Catholic can marry a member of the British royal family).
Dual citizenship is an issue of interest to me personally. My mother is an American citizen and Canadian landed immigrant. When my parents came to Canada in the late 1960s (they met in California but moved to Ontario because my father found a job here) they were not sure whether they would stay in this country or go back to the United States . They figured that in the event of the latter it would be good to have at least one American citizen in the family. As at the time neither Canada nor the States permitted dual citizenship, my mom remained an American (my siblings and I are trying to convince her to sit down and fill out the paperwork to become Canadian, but we joke she’s too lazy to do it).
By dint of my family background, if I wanted I could be a citizen of the United States . Doing so would allow me to migrate there more easily and, even if I remained where I am, vote in that country’s elections. However, neither possibility appeals to me. Not only are my chances of ever leaving Canada extremely remote at present, but I see little point in electing a government of a nation in which I don’t reside and whose political decisions will have no effect on my life. Furthermore, I question the fairness of giving my vote equal weight to that of an individual who actually lives in the US and contributes to it through his or her taxes, labour, volunteer efforts, and so on.
I do not necessarily advocate eliminating dual citizenship. Still, I believe we must address some issues surrounding it. For instance, should people who have ceased to reside and pay taxes in Canada for years be automatically granted free rescue services in times of crisis, as happened in Lebanon two summers ago? Such questions will probably never be resolved to everyone’s satisfaction (and I myself don’t claim to have all the answers), but they nevertheless deserve to be asked.
Hi Emilia
I like that we allow multiple citizenships. It is definitely not something we should abolish. I always thought that you had to spend a certain amount of time in Canada or live here at least once every certain number of years to retain it though (speaking of those who live abroad).
I think that some measures should be in place so someone does not leave for years and years without even visiting but retains total rights. Hopefully before we get to that point though we would start treating all citizens equal. I am still confused why that lady that committed crime in Mexico got attention and an $87,000 flight home on a private jet and a Canadian citizen is being left to rot in the justice system of an east African country as we speak. That Lebanon situation really caught peoples attention due to the large numbers. I imagine the costs were high. I wonder how many have chosen since then to spend more time in Canada? It would be interesting to see follow up.
It is a country’s duty to protect citizens abroad….but it cannot do so selectively. It cant only act when the numbers are huge, or only when the numbers are small either. It will be a real task to come up with a fair set of rules. I have no idea how to solve the issue. I sure hope that no one on the right wing of politics is involved…they will outlaw people who live here full time from holding passports to other countries, let alone stopping Canadians abroad from claiming citizenship. Many of them would like to enforce that selectively too.
B
Dear B,
Thank you for your response. I would not want to abolish dual citizenship, as some people do. However, I think there should be, as you say, some measures to prevent those who haven’t lived here and/or paid taxes to this country to suddenly claim full rights. But it is a difficult question as to how to implement this.
I didn’t hear about that person in East Africa. Could you provide me with a link?
I am not saying that Canada should not help its citizens in distress. But in the case of Lebanon, perhaps it would be fair to say that those who were transported out of there should be made to pay for the services Canada provided (as the United States does). Regarding individual cases of people in trouble (ex. Brenda Martin), again, I don’t say Canada should not help them, but if they put themselves in a risky situation deliberately, maybe they should compensate the Canadian government, and hence the Canadian taxpayers, in some way. For example, I am thinking about James Loney, the peacekeeper who went to Iraq and was imprisoned there for three months. He certainly had noble intentions, but he must have known that going to Iraq in a time of war was a dangerous prospect. I am happy that he was released, but it struck me that given that he put himself in such a situation, perhaps he should do something to pay back those who helped rescue him.
Anyway, it’s not an easy issue. At least you and I are humble enough to admit we don’t have all the answers!
Emilia
http://www.thestar.com/article/420970
Hi Emilia….I didn’t think I would find the one article I knew of the even mentioned that situation of the other Canadian who is in trouble abroad. But I got lucky.
I am not sure if the situation is resolved cause so few news outlets reported on it that follow up is not really necessary. This article mentions a number of situations but the one I was talking about is the one in Ethiopia.
You bring up an interesting issue when you speak of people who put them self in harms way. Journalists would be the most common in that category. I am not sure how it would be decided who should pay what amount of the rescue or if setting a rule like that would rub people the wrong way altogether and cause more problems than it solves.
B
Thank you for the link. It seems in some ways the Canadian government is in a difficult position in deciding when and where to intervene. About people putting themselves in harm’s way, with journalists I always have somewhat more understanding of them because in their way they are performing a service to society (that is, providing news). With guys like James Loney, again, he seems like a great guy, but his peace and love ideas strike me as a bit naive. As I said, certainly he should have known he would be stepping in harm’s way by going into a war zone. I am not saying that he should pay for his rescue directly out of his wallet; maybe he might do some community service (I know; it sounds like he’s a criminal paying for his crimes) in order to give back to the country that rescued him.
It’s a tough question…