Tuesday, August 17

KIM LUNMAN
British Columbia Bureau
Tuesday, August 17, 1999

Victoria -- Canada plans to deport nearly two-thirds of the 131 illegal Chinese migrants who arrived in a smugglers' vessel on British Columbia's shores last week.

They had set sail from the Fujian coast two months ago.

A total of 77 of the passengers aboard the freighter seized off the coast of the Queen Charlotte Islands have been deemed inadmissible to Canada and could be sent home within weeks, immigration officials said at a news conference in Victoria yesterday.

Immigration Canada said that's because the illegal migrants told officials the only reason they came to North America was to make more money than they can earn at home.

"They said they were put on a boat and sent to what they call the Gold Mountain to work," said Jim Redmond, manager of Immigration Canada for Vancouver Island.

Only 10 were deemed eligible to make refugee claims to seek asylum in Canada after interviews with immigration officers in Victoria.

The fate of 43 unaccompanied minors aged 11 to 17 is still uncertain. The province's child-welfare authorities are working with immigration officials to determine whether they can stay or be returned home. Another adult was also being processed late yesterday.

A previous boatload of illegal Chinese migrants, also from Fujian province, arrived on Vancouver Island last month. All but two passengers made refugee claims immediately. All 123 are now being processed and awaiting hearings, including the 37 being detained in a Vancouver jail in connection with the smuggling operation.
None of the passengers aboard the two ships had identification. In the first case, officials said, all declared a fear of persecution on being returned to China. Anyone arriving in Canada without identification can seek refugee status.

"These are two quite significantly different groups," Mr. Redmond said. "This group did not [indicate they wanted to seek refugee status]. I can't tell you why."

Lawyers representing some of the 77 said they would seek leave to appeal the deportation orders to the Federal Court of Appeal. Under the Immigration Act, the migrants are entitled to appeal the decision, and the process could take months.

Lawyers for the migrants say they fear legitimate refugee claimants are being turned away because of political pressure. The arrival of the second ship in a month has sparked a public backlash.

Protesters greeted the latest boatload in Port Hardy, B.C., with signs reading "Feed our people first." A Victoria newspaper published a poll showing 97 per cent of more than 3,000 respondents wanted the refugees deported. And the province has called on Ottawa to foot the welfare bill for the migrants, estimated to cost B.C. taxpayers $5.5-million.

The cost to federal taxpayers for the processing of the two ships of more than 250 illegal Chinese migrants is estimated so far at $750,000.

A team of 10 lawyers was interviewing the migrants in trailers at the Esquimalt navy base yesterday where they are being detained.

Lawyer Peter Golden said some of the migrants expressing a fear of being returned to China were told during initial interviews with immigration officials they don't have a legitimate refugee claim.

"It's the refugee board, under the legislation that is the body that's appropriate to decide those claims, not the immigration officers.

"Other people indicated they did have fears they would be jailed or fined or beaten when they went back."

Mr. Redmond said none of the migrants ordered deported indicated they were seeking refugee claims or had a reason to fear persecution at home.

Immigration officers conduct a background review to determine eligibility based on two criteria. Deportation can be ordered if the individual has a criminal record or has made a prior refugee claim. It is up to the Refugee and Immigration Board to make a final determination at a hearing on whether a person has a well-founded fear of persecution if returned to the native country. The process can take up to several years.

Earlier yesterday, the crew of nine men, believed to be South Korean, appeared in a Victoria courtroom amid mysterious health concerns raised by a judge who ordered anyone attending the hearing to wear surgical masks for their own protection.

Provincial Court Judge Jeanne Harvey, who was wearing a mask on the bench, called it "a very unique situation" and asked that the next court appearance, due Aug. 26, be held by video from the jail where they are being detained.

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