Letër e SHBSHK-së Toronto drejtuar Ministrit të Emigracionit Jason Kenney

Në tetor të vitit 2013, qeveria kanadeze do të fillojë t’ju kërkojë qytetarëve shqiptarë që aplikojnë për vizë vizitori, studenti ose pune, shenjat e gishtërinjve. Në listën e vendeve, të cilave u është vendosur ky kusht shtrëngues, Shqipëria figuron e vetme mes vendeve të ndryshme aziatikë dhe afrikanë, islamikë ose diktatorialë. Në këtë kontekst, Shoqata jonë e shqetësuar për këtë vendim i ka dërguar këtë letër Ministrit të Emigracionit, z. Jason Kenney:

Honorable Minister Jason Kenney,

The Albanian-Canadian Community Association based in Toronto represents thousands of Albanians who live in the Greater Toronto Area. Founded in 1990, our non-for-profit-organization strives to promote Albanian culture, make the voice of our community heard and assist our members integrate into the Canadian life. We operate uninfluenced by our members political affiliation and religious belief.
We learned that the Government of Canada has proposed to introduce biometric identity screening for Albanian citizens when they apply for a temporary resident visa, study permit or work permit. Furthermore, we noticed that Albania is listed among countries of Islamic fundamentalist background or dictatorship.

We feel that this decision is not only wrong, but also hostile towards Albanian people, its Government and especially our community. By fingerprinting these applicants, the Canadian Government not only is causing huge inconvenience with related high costs, but also discouraging thousands of genuine applicants from visiting Canada, including but not limited to parents who wish to visit with their children, invitees on weddings, international students and performing artists. What is most concerning is the fact that Albanians have been now wrongly labeled thus damaging their reputation in Canada.

As new successful and proud Canadians, our community members are also proud of their ethnic background. With pride we celebrate our history and values and share them with many MPs who come to our festivities to support us. Albanians and Canadians are also proud allies within NATO taking part in the same military operations fighting terrorism in Afghanistan and elsewhere.

We therefore strongly express our disappointment and ask that the decision be reviewed.

Truly Yours,
Ruki Kondaj
President
Albanian-Canadian Community Association of Toronto