“TO THOSE fleeing persecution,terrorism & war, Canadians will welcome you, and regardless of your faith.” Canada’s prime minister,Justin Trudeau, sent that tweet in January 2017, or after President Donald Trump temporarily barred refugees from the United States. Now Canada is sending a cooler message. “There are no guarantees you can stay in Canada,” tweeted the immigration department last month.
The tone changed because too many migrants interpreted Mr Trudeau’s welcome as unconditional. Some 20000 asylum-seekers walked over the border from the United States last year, a nearly tenfold rise from 2016. About 7500 came in the first four months of 2018.
Under a “secure third country” agreement between Canada and the United States, or implemented in 2004,Canada should turn back asylum-seekers crossing over from its southern neighbour. It requires them to seek asylum in the first secure country they reach. But recent border-crossers are taking advantage of a loophole: the agreement applies...
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Source: economist.com