OTTAWA, July 16 (UPI) -- Canadian officials imposed visa requirements on visitors from the Czech Republic and Mexico following a sharp increase in refugee claims from travelers from those countries.
The Canadian Ministry of Immigration issued releases stating that effective at 12:01 a.m. EDT Tuesday, the new visa regulations would be in effect. It wasn't long before protests were filed by governments in Prague and Mexico City.
The Czech Republic said it was recalling Karel Zebrakovsky and instating retaliatory requirements on Canadian visitors to the Czech Republic. It also asked the European Union to take retributive action. EU diplomats said they would consult with Canadian officials about the situation.
The Mexican Embassy in Ottawa, under Ambassador Francisco Barrio Terrazas, didn't take as sharp a stance, putting two lines on its Web site saying: "The Government of Mexico regrets the decision by the Government of Canada, announced today, to impose visas on Mexican nationals traveling to Canada as tourists.
"Mexico will continue to promote actions toward modifying the Canadian measure as soon as possible."
Canadian Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney said the asylum requests from travelers from the Czech Republic and Mexico were putting strains on government resources through a large increase in the number of refugee claims.
"In addition to creating significant delays and spiraling new costs in our refugee program, the sheer volume of these claims is undermining our ability to help people fleeing real persecution," Kenney said in a ministry release. "All too often, people who really need Canada's protection find themselves in a long line, waiting for months and sometimes years to have their claims heard. This is unacceptable.
"The visa requirement I am announcing will give us a greater ability to manage the flow of people into Canada and verify bona fides. By taking this important step towards reducing the burden on our refugee system, we will be better equipped to process genuine refugee claims faster."
The new rules began Tuesday, with travelers from the Czech Republic and Mexico required to apply for entry when they arrive in Canada. Beginning Thursday, travelers from those countries must have a visa to enter Canada at all.
The Immigration Ministry release stated that since a visa requirement for Czech citizens was lifted in October 2007 about 3,000 refugee claims have been filed by Czech nationals. The release said the Czech Republic is the source of the second-highest number of refugee requests, and about 85 percent are eventually approved.
Most of those asylum requests have come from ethnic Roma who allege they face discrimination in the Czech Republic.
Canadian officials said the top location for requests for refugee status is Mexico, where claims have tripled since 2005 to more than 9,400 in 2008, of which 11 percent were approved. The Immigration Ministry said one-quarter of asylum requests it receives are from Mexican citizens.
"The visa process will allow us to assess who is coming to Canada as a legitimate visitor and who might be trying to use the refugee system to jump the immigration queue," Kenney said. "It is not fair for those who have been waiting patiently to come to Canada, sometimes for years, when others succeed in bypassing our immigration system."
