A petition is currently available online seeking extensions to the temporary work visas of Ukrainians who fled to Canada in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago.
Thanks to an incredible backlog at the agencies that are supposed to be looking at the extension requests of those refugees and the general backlog in refugee claims and an atmosphere that is spilling over from our cousins to the south which unfairly vilifies immigrants for every ill in Canadian society, including housing shortages, unemployment and strains on our healthcare system—oh the litany goes on and on—these courageous people who only wish for a peaceful life, one free from a sky filled with Russian bombs, rockets and drones, are living in limbo, unsure whether they will be able to live, work and, yes, play here in Canada.
The history of Canada is inextricably linked to the Ukraine. Our prairie provinces were largely settled by Ukrainians, first fleeing the pogroms of the Russian czars, then the aftermath of the First World War, and yet again from the oppression of the Soviet Union, to the aftermath of the Second World War and then yet another round of Soviet oppression.
Each bringing waves of fleeing refugees who, in turn, provided indisputably huge benefits to our nation.
Then came blessed independence with the end of the Cold War and the breakup of the Soviet Union. The Ukrainians even gave up their nuclear arsenal, with assurances from the world that they would be secure.
Beware the promises of princes.
The Russian leaders, bent on recreating the Russian Empire/Soviet Union, first invaded Crimea and then, most recently, launched a horrific invasion of Ukraine that has led to thousands of deaths, the destruction of much of Ukraine’s infrastructure and untold suffering.
The Ukrainian refugees that have sought shelter under our nation’s wings have proven, each and every time through history, to have been a boon to our country’s culture, economy and security. This newest wave is no exception.
It was made quite plain by the “two Yulias” who came to Manitoulin a year before their husbands could join them (finishing their national service duties at the time) and whose story was documented within this paper’s pages that they wished to settle in this country permanently. Canada’s reputation is second to none in the world—no matter what some political actors might try to tell us.
This paper heartily supports a petition being proffered for signing by a Canadian Member of Parliament that seeks to find a permanent solution to the quandary being faced by our Ukrainian friends and neighbours. This is something that crosses nearly all political and partisan lines on Manitoulin.
The petition can be found at: at www.ourcommons.ca/petition and searching for e-6866 (Citizenship and immigration).
