Canada to America Travel - কানাডা থেকে আমেরিকা যাওয়া - কানাডা অভিবাসনের টুকিটাকি

Going to America from Canada - কানাডা থেকে আমেরিকা যাওয়া

Going to the United States from Canada? Think twice before you leave: US Border Guard members can arrest you on Canadian soil.

Will you go to the United States from Canada? Think twice before leaving. Because, if the members of the US Border Guard are not satisfied, you can be arrested on Canadian soil from now on. Canada passed the law and gave them the power to make arrests.

Bill C-23, which has previously been passed by a committee in the Canadian Parliament and Senate, has recently received royal assent. Any bill passed by Parliament and Senate with the consent of the Raj is finalized and becomes law. This is the rule in Canada.

And the process of giving this power has been going on for a long time. It started in 2015. On March 17 of that year, an agreement was reached between Canada and the United States. The Conservative government led by Stephen Harper was in power in Canada at the time.

The bill was finally approved by the Raj through various processes on December 12, 2017. This is also known as the Pre-Clearance Act.

Under the previous law, any Canadian citizen or immigrant entering a pre-clearance area could return without answering a question if the U.S. Border Guard was embarrassed or dissatisfied with the offensive question. But under the new law, no one can come back without a satisfactory answer to the question of the US Border Guards. He has to say why he wants to return without entering the United States. He could be arrested if he does not answer questions or if members of the U.S. Border Guard are not satisfied with the answer.

The issue of pre-clearance is that if a Canadian citizen or immigrant wants to travel to the United States for travel or work, US customs and immigration procedures can be processed at a Canadian airport or train station. Eight Canadian airports currently have this facility. This facility will be provided at two more airports soon. This facility is also available at several railway stations in Canada.

It should be noted that this process of pre-clearance at the border between Canada and the United States has been going on for the last sixty years. This measure is taken to avoid excessive crowds at the border.

আগের Under the previous Pre-Clearance Act, only a Canadian Border Officer could strip a passenger traveling to the United States. At the time, any U.S. border agent could have been present at the scene if he wished. Under the new law, a U.S. border agent can now carry out the strip search on his own if a Canadian official does not feel the need to do so or refuses to do so. And if you don't answer the US Border Agent's question (no matter how offensive or abusive), a traveler will break Canadian law and will be charged under Canadian federal law.

In other words, the danger is now from two clans. No matter how annoyed or angry or angry a Canadian citizen or immigrant may be in the face of offensive or insulting questions from the US Border Guard. Nothing can be said even if it violates his human rights.

Needless to say, the main target of the new law will be the Muslim community in Canada. We have already seen that some of the Muslims who came to the United States from Canada became disillusioned with the US Border Guards. Talking to a few people from Toronto who often go to the United States for various work or to visit relatives and friends, it is known that almost every one of them has been harassed by the US Border Guards at some point. Having been confined to a separate room for more than an hour, they have been plagued with questions that are not only related to travel, but sometimes even exceed the level of elegance.

An incident in the month of February last year. Fadwa Alaoi, a Canadian Muslim woman of Moroccan descent wearing a hijab, was on her way to the United States from Brosard, a Montreal suburb. She also had two children and an adult cousin. Fadwa has traveled to the United States many times before to visit his parents and other relatives without hindrance. But this time he was stopped by members of the US Border Guard. He was detained for about four hours and asked various questions. And almost all of those questions were about his religion. He was also asked about his views on US President Donald Trump through various questions. But after asking so many questions, members of the US Border Guard were not satisfied with him and he was turned away from the border. His fingerprints and pictures were taken before returning. In an interview with CBC News, Fadwa said, "I am deeply offended and saddened by the behavior of the US Border Guards."

Fadwa added that U.S. border guards checked his and his cousin's cell phones for about an hour. After that, the two were interrogated separately for about an hour. Whether they practice religion regularly, which mosque they go to, what is the name of the imam of the mosque, what is discussed in the mosque are all questioned again and again. I was also asked if I knew any of the six worshipers who were killed last year at a mosque in Quebec City.

There was a video clip on Fadwar's cell phone where the worshipers were seen praying. A member of the US Border Guard wanted to know what the scene was about.

Fadwa and his cousin were kept seated for about an hour after being asked various questions. Then a guard came and said you and your companions would not be allowed to enter the United States. Because, there are videos on your cell phone that have been anti-American.

An email from CBC News was sent to US Customs and Border Protection to inquire about Fadwar. In reply, it was informed that they are unable to say anything about any particular person. The law does not give them this opportunity.

The reply to the email added that US Customs and Border Protection's top priority is to ensure that militants and their weapons do not enter the country. We do not discriminate against those who travel to the United States for various reasons, judging by their religion, ethnicity, gender, etc.

In the United States, about 12 lakh visitors from Canada and other countries come every day to face immigration and customs. Of these, an average of three to five hundred visitors are not allowed to enter the United States.

Many members of Canada's Muslim community have traveled to the United States since before Donald Trump came to power, dealing with various harassment and misconduct. Some are hoping that some changes in the pre-clearance law will increase the level of harassment and misconduct. Corey Scheffman, Toronto coordinator of the Canadian Cross-Border Legal Coalition, said the discriminatory treatment of U.S. customs officials towards Canadians, especially Canadian Muslims, has increased significantly since Donald Trump came to power.

Michael Green, a Canadian immigration lawyer, said earlier: “The new law proposed in Parliament by Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodell will deprive Canadians of an important right. That is, they will not be able to return voluntarily from the pre-clearance area (which is located on Canadian soil) if they do not like the questions asked by the US Border Guards. US Border Guards can use force to answer questions. If necessary, you can make arrests on Canadian soil. "It's a very offensive and degrading law," said Michael Green.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, however, claims that the law will not infringe on the rights of Canadian citizens enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms by US border agents. "When someone goes from within Canada for pre-clearance, they are under the protection of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms," he said.

Earlier, the prime minister had said that the passage of Bill C-23 was in the best interests of Canadians and those traveling to the United States. It is necessary for border security as well as to expedite immigration and customs operations at the border.

But critics say giving more power to U.S. border agents means increasing the likelihood of passengers being harassed, especially when someone like Donald Trump is sworn in as president. Moreover, Trump himself has said that he does not believe that the US-Canada border is safe.

However, the Conservative Party is in favor of passing the bill. Because, while they were in power, they signed an agreement with the United States to enact this law in 2015. After the agreement, the United States passed it in Congress in December of that year without wasting time. But Canada is moving a little slower. Canada introduced the bill in Parliament in June 2016.

The Prime Minister's Office received e-mail messages from a large number of people a few months ago regarding the implementation of new pre-clearance measures at Canadian airports and other ports. E-mails flooded the prime minister's office following a report on CBC News at the time, expressing concern about the new law giving powers to US border guards. Government officials said the number of messages sent by the public was "unprecedented" and that public safety officials were surprised.

This information has been known from the official documents. It was then thought that the bill would probably not be implemented in the end. But that idea was wrong.

The cause of concern is primarily the ability of the U.S. Border Guard to detain Canadian citizens or immigrants. In most of the letters sent to the Prime Minister's Office, the authors expressed concern about the new powers being given to U.S. border guards working on Canadian soil. These include the ability of Border Guards to carry weapons and, most controversially, the ability to detain U.S. officials for further questioning if they are not satisfied with the Canadian tourist's response during interrogation.

"Our rights as Canadian citizens have been violated by giving US authorities the power to detain a Canadian while on Canadian soil," wrote a British Columbian. "While I sympathize with the need for national security, I see that this is another dangerous blow to our sovereignty," he wrote.

Under previous law, members of the U.S. Border Guard could not carry any sidearms (bayonets, pistols or revolvers) in the pre-clearance area. But the current law has given them that right. They will now be able to search people who are willing to go to the United States if they suspect they are undressed.

It can be assumed that this law is mainly targeted at Canada's visible minority, especially Muslims. The new law does not target smugglers or drug traffickers at the border. But even then, there has been considerable dissatisfaction among mainstream Canadians with the new law. Questions have also been raised about human rights. The question of Canadians' rights being violated by foreigners on Canadian soil has been raised.

On the other hand, Canadians who go to the United States to work on work permits are also worried that the new law could create new problems in the pre-clearance area. Many are also worried about not being able to go to work. According to a report by News1130.com, protests against the Pre-Clearance Act were held in Vancouver last December. There, members of the workers' union took to the streets to protest. The BC Federation of Labor expressed support for the protest. Irene Landsinger, president of the federation, joined the protest. He said the law was tantamount to a reversal. Judging from a human rights perspective, this law is ultimately backward.

Tim McSorley, a spokesman for the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group, said US border guards could question any passenger traveling to the United States. In such a situation, if someone does not tell the truth or refuses to answer the question, it may be considered a crime by the US Border Guards and they may have various suspicions. Even if you want to search someone by undressing, nothing can be said and no complaint can be made against it in the court.

He added that there is no such pre-clearance zone for Canadian border guards at US airports or seaports. Under the new law, however, Canadian authorities may propose the establishment of such a pre-clearance zone. But I'm sure no American would be happy about that.

Meanwhile, a survey found that most Canadians believe that Bill C-23 has given American border guards too much power on Canadian soil. This information came from a survey conducted by Angus Reid Institute.

According to a report in CBC News, critics say the law is annoying and harassing.

As mentioned earlier, the main target of this law is the Muslim community in Canada. The United States has always feared a militant attack on its own territory, and the move is aimed at tightening the border to prevent that attack. The United States must have this right. The government of a country is responsible for protecting the lives and property of its citizens. And in doing so, the government of any country can impose restrictions on the border. But in doing so, shouldn't the human rights of citizens of other countries be violated? Isn't it a shame for the Canadian government that the rights of Canadians will be violated by Americans on Canadian soil?

"When someone goes in for pre-clearance from within Canada, they are under the protection of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms." But we know that the most powerful man in the United States, President Donald Trump, is himself an extreme racist. He has been making one racist remark after another since taking power. It is against Muslims as well as against the African people. This racist identity of Donald Trump is not really new. He was known as a racist long before he was elected president. Surprisingly, the American people chose a racist, arrogant, abusive, insane and lying person as their president! And what happens when the Border Guards of a country under such a person treat the citizens of a listed country willing to go to the United States? Where is the guarantee that their arrogance and arrogance will not infringe on the rights of Canadian citizens enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms?

লেখকঃ খুরশিদ আলম

সম্পাদক ও প্রকাশক "প্রবাসী কণ্ঠ"