What Was The Point of Passports Again?

The Winnipeg Free Press posted a story today about a Winnipeg' couple’s experience crossing into the US for a weekend trip of golfing and shopping. Unfortunately 54 year old Donald Miller’s name and birthdate was shared by someone who, when entered into the US CBP system, came back as “armed and dangerous”.

CBP officers surrounded the car and drew weapons on the couple, instructing them to get out of the car where they were handcuffed and brought into separate interrogation rooms where Mr. Miller was subjected to what the news story describes as an “embarrassingly intimate search”. He was not told why he was being detained although he asked, and had a gun pointed at him during the search and during an interrogation. Finally he was freed and was told it was mistaken identity.

I’m in agreement with Donald in that there was nothing wrong with how the CBP officers reacted. Just like I would expect for our Canadian guards, if the information given suggests someone in front of them could be armed and dangerous, they need to protect themselves and ensure any threat is vetted and identified.

But wasn’t the WHTI supposed to deal with this? Canadians are now crossing with either a government issued passport or enhanced identification card. Canada has spent millions implementing these programs to ensure our citizens meet the requirements of the US border.

Even more disturbing is the system CBP officers use is an FBI operated database. From the news story:

The National Crime Information Center is a computerized database operated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The database contains information on criminal records, fugitives, missing persons and wanted persons. As well, stolen licence plates are on file, as well as stolen boats and guns.

The information comes from several areas including the FBI, federal, state, local and foreign criminal justice agencies.

The database is open only to federal, state, local law enforcement agencies and other related justice agencies.

So you run a name through an FBI operated database, a name pops up saying armed and dangerous, but…what…the FBI database has no picture of the suspect, no description, nothing that can be cross referenced against the passport photo or *gasp* even just LOOKING at the guy in the car? Instead, a name and birthday match are all that’s required to yank a guy from his car and put him through the ringer while they determine if he’s *the* guy.

Maybe before Canada sunk so much money into getting our people ready for the WHTI standards we should have issued demands on the Americans to get their information systems in order as well.

And I totally echo Don’s comment about nobody offering any apology, regardless of the officers just doing their job.

"Thing is, the Americans don't know how to say 'I'm sorry for the inconvenience.'"

Visa: You Can’t Get Into Canada Without It (for Mexico and Czech Republic Citizens Anyway)

I’ve had a few days to digest what’s gone on between Canada, Mexico, and the Czech Republic. For those that are out of the loop, here’s the backstory:

Since 2007 Canada has received more than 12,000 Czech and Mexican refugee claimants came to Canada with most of them being illegitimate. For each claimant, it costs around $29,000 because while the paperwork is being done they are cared for and put up somewhere in Canada. That’s almost $350 million dollars that Canadian taxpayers have put forward to care for people escaping other countries, and remember a high percentage are illegitimate.

The reason Czech and Mexico are singled out is because they’re the two countries who have the largest number of refugee claimants coming to Canada. Obviously the cost as well as security issues need to be addressed, and that’s what the Canadian government tried to do this week.

On Monday it was announced that all travellers from Mexico or the Czech Republic need to get a visa to travel to Canada. In one of the biggest WTF decisions I’ve ever seen, the new rules went into effect yesterday (Tuesday). That’s right: announce new visa requirements on Monday, put them into effect the next day…although, bless their hearts, the government did allow a 48 hour grace period.

Of course Mexico and the Czechs aren’t too happy about this. Mexico’s government hasn’t seemed to be too vocal (probably too busy with other stuff like drug cartels and US/Mexico border relations) although their citizens are definitely pissed off. The Czech Republic took a more dramatic stance, petitioning to the EU and making a huge drama-queenish type of display.

Canadians are also upset as well. One story suggested that Mexican tourist dollars bring in $235 million into Canada’s economy every year, and many businesses rely in part on Mexican tourists. Notice I’m not mentioning the Czech’s. In every story I read, I didn’t see one mention or suggestion of how Czech visitors en-masee provide value to Canada’s industries other than keeping our immigration department fully staffed.

So what are some next steps or possible solutions to this first-draft attempt of saving taxpayer dollars and securing our border?

Extend The Grace Period
Even the Americans gave us months of notice that we’d need passports to cross over by land. For Canada to make this announcement on a Monday and have it go into effect the next day, even with a 48 grace period, is unacceptable. We have a good relationship with Mexico and there’s no reason to punish the majority of travellers from there because of a comparatively small group that costs us big money at home.

And don’t forget that Canadian industries that rely on tourism dollars got no advance notice either. So not only are people in Mexico scrambling to get travel visas for upcoming trips, businesses expecting those travellers now need to brace for the hit to their expected income.

The Canadian government needs to extend this timeframe. Do the right thing and give these people at lest 4 – 6 months notice.

Mexico and Czech Republic Could Just Pay Up
Here’s another idea: since its people from other countries trying to leave and seek asylum, how about if we charge those countries for each asylum seeker? Kinda like a cost share: legit travellers can still come in visa free, and for those that feel that their government isn’t doing enough to protect them from imminent harm or persecution, maybe *THEY* can foot the bill while we determine qualification for refugee status.

Of course, that adds a whole level of cost collection, but it puts onus on where the problem is originating from. Canada isn’t looking for refugees, but we believe in helping those that truly need help. If Mexico and the Czech Republic could pony up some cash so we can help THEIR citizens who are trying to escape, that would be appreciated.

Canada’s Immigration System Needs Fixing?
I pose this as a question because I don’t really know if it does or not. You could say that its a bloated bureaucracy that is more of a cost suck than anything, but you could argue that about any arm of government. The important thing is that the people working in our immigration system have access to information, tools, and resources to ensure they can expedite the approval process for anyone seeking entry to Canada through immigration, whether refugee or otherwise. If we’re going to be seeing huge savings by reducing dollars spent towards Mexican and Czech refugees and eliminating that extra burden of paperwork and support, then we should see increased performance in other areas.

It’ll be interesting to see what plays out over the next few weeks.

BF

Related articles and sources:

TheStar.com – Visa Restrictions Spark Backlash

TheStar.com – Families Fume as Vacation Plans Wrecked

Globe and Mail – Visa Decision Leaves Tourists In A Panic

CBC – Toronto Tourism Braces for Mexican Visa Impact