Canada remains the perilous back door to America
nationalpost.com
Bush snubs Chrétien in U.S. anger over our lackadaisical border security
Diane Francis -- Financial Post
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien was snubbed by U.S. President George W. Bush again at the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation conference. Mr. Bush did not have time to meet officially with our Prime Minister, although Mr. Chrétien did manage to be photographed with the President.
Canada is a major security risk to the Americans, and Ottawa is the problem.
Canadians are furious. In the past 2 1/2 months, I have had 10,000 e-mails and letters in favour of my efforts to expose the recklessness of the situation. B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell has joined the cause, calling for the removal of all illegal aliens in this country as a priority and rules to create a common North American border.
Americans are furious, too. Congress is employing up to 7,500 more border police to protect Americans from Canada's lax immigration and refugee process.
"We estimate that anywhere from 50,000 to 70,000 dangerous criminals and terrorists are in Canada right now and are wanted for deportation or criminal charges," said a high-ranking FBI spokesman in an interview with me over the weekend from Washington.
In another interview two weeks ago, former FBI official, Oliver Buck Revell, told me: "Unless and until Canada can tighten its controls on immigration and refugees, these controls will have to be imposed at the border. Washington has great concern about Canada. They see what's happening here. We obviously have our own problems, but Canada's been an easy mark for years. Law enforcement there is very frustrated with the growth of the organized criminal elements and concerned that the terrorist groups realize Canada's a fertile ground, not only in terms of getting in and staying but also for fundraising and propaganda and other financial services."
Instead of cleaning up the mess, Elinor Caplan, the Immigration Minister, says there's nothing wrong.
Last week, her response to dozens of my columns pointing out frightening facts was to have a flunkie write a letter to the editor attacking me personally. Not one of the issues was addressed in that letter (which contained two misstatements that were not published.) It was sloppy, shoot-the-messenger stuff.
So to repeat, here are the questions Canadians and Americans deserve answers to:
- Last year, 26,564 "refugees" were let into Canada, some with and some without identification. Where are they? Who are they?
- For the past decade, an average of 26,000, or 71 "refugees" a day, have been let into this country, some with and some without identification. That's 260,000 strangers, many of whom have disappeared or become a police, housing, welfare, medical, educational or terrorist burden on our society. Where are they? Who are they?
- Why hasn't Ottawa arrested and removed the three dozen dangerous Algerian terrorists (linked to Osama bin Laden) living in Montreal after I reported they were here as fake refugees in 1997? One was caught in 1999 on his way to blow up Los Angeles International Airport. Where are the others? Why haven't they been arrested?
- Why would Canada appoint as immigration minister Ms. Caplan, a woman whose brother-in-law worked in the immigration industry and has defended some notorious "refugees?"
- Why did Ms. Caplan, in December, 1999, use her special powers to let 3,000 Muslims from Afghanistan and Somalia into the country without identification? Where are they? Who are they?
- Why has Canada allowed Quebec to dictate immigration policy, which has facilitated the arrival of hundreds of questionable and potentially dangerous francophone Muslims into Montreal as "students?" Where are these people? Who are they? Why aren't they checked thoroughly?
- Why does Canada allow in as refugees, and even immigrants, persons with non-treatable tuberculosis and who are HIV positive? Why does Canada let people pick their own doctors to examine them? Does Canada not realize that by doing so it is also exposing Americans to health hazards because the border is so easily crossed?
- Why has Canada allowed about 80,000 "entrepreneurial" immigrants to stay? They promised jobs and didn't deliver, according to a recent study? Who are these fraudsters? Where are they and why haven't they been kicked out?
- Why doesn't Canada keep track of the excessive and questionable numbers of "students" here on visas, notably those from dangerous countries? Why doesn't Canada ensure the students leave when their visas lapse? Why doesn't Canada make educational institutions responsible for this?
- Why has Ottawa trashed the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and other agencies investigating immigrants and refugees? In 1995, there were 20,000 RCMP officers, now only 16,000. Is this why Canada has failed to prosecute a single major money laundering case?
- Why hasn't Ottawa, as Mr. Campbell suggests, made it a priority to hunt down the 27,000 people who have been ordered deported but can't be found? |
