In Canada Desis have a choice

JAN 16 - Is the Canadian immigration system better or worse than it was 12 years ago, when the Liberals assumed power? Are immigration applications being decided better or faster than before?

Some desis in Canada have these questions in mind as they get ready to vote on January 23rd, some still not having decided as to who they are going to vote for. It's confusing some say. Others think it is downright simple. Not as complex as back in the subcontinent though, commented another.

In terms of numbers, the Liberals are letting in fewer immigrants now than when they assumed power in 1993. In 2004, they admitted 235,824 immigrants, which is about 20,000 fewer than when they took charge. In the same period, they drastically slashed family-based immigration from 112,679 per year to 62,246, while increasing economic migrants from 105,667 to 133,746.

The numbers suggest the Liberals have been kinder to refugees: in 2004, they landed 32,686 refugees, compared to 30,629 in 1993. However, this is clearly not the case. By implementing the Safe Third Country Agreement with the United States, a huge percentage of refugees that would otherwise have sought protection in Canada will now be stranded in the U.S. Refugee landings in Canada are expected to drop by at least half.

In terms of service delivery, under the Liberals, the system has become more centralized, making it rare that an applicant is able to sit face-to-face with the person who is making the decision that could have an enormous impact on them or a Canadian relative or business.

Is this a call for a Conservative vote? Absolutely not!

Who knows what the Conservatives would have done given the same opportunity and socio-economic conditions? And besides, the Liberals did make a few minor improvements. As for the Conservatives, they have not advanced any kind of real vision for the immigration system. They simply declare, in their election platform entitled �Stand Up For Canada,� that they will �stand up for a fair and sensible immigration plan.� Not much to go on, huh?

The choice for Jan. 23 is a slow and ineffective Liberal system versus an unknown future under Conservative stewardship. What a choice.

"Well we have made our choice. We are voting for the liberals, said Hemant. So did Ifitkhar, a Bangladeshi immigrant from Sylhet and Mushtaq Awan from Lahore, Pakistani Punjab's capital city.

I asked them why and they responded with a "Why not?" They felt more comfortable with the Liberals, they said. Some Indians, specially, the Christian Catholics from South India, Kolkata, Karnataka, Tamilnadu, want to vote for the Conservatives but they have not decided yet. They sounded undecided.

In 2004, only eighteen (18) percent of the immigrants voted. But the South Asian voters percentage was more. Having assimilated in the society and adopted the Canadian culture somewhat by now, the percentage may go up this time.

According to Elections Canada, the 2000 federal election saw a mere 25 per cent of potential youth votes. In total, 64 per cent of registered voters went to the ballots that year. Four years later, in 2004, that number hit a historical low of 60.9 per cent. No election since 1867 had seen such voter apathy.

If the percentage of immigrant voters goes up, it could tilt the results in favor of either party, I mean Liberals or Conservatives (Tories).

Typically, a higher percentage vote is a red herring for an incumbent candidate, in this case it could mean a positive sign for him also.

Having said that, no one should ignore Canada's silent majority. The farmers I mean - equivalent to the American Midwest, who put Bush into the White House for the second term without a heartbeat. Same can happen in Canada too.

Conservatives are now widely seen as holding a significant lead in polls across the country.

Remember the wind blows from the south to the north, specially in this part of the world. So anything can happen except an upset victory for the NDP or the Green Party.

Some say British Columbia poll results will actually matter. Why? Because, the Conservatives promise $1 billion over 10 years to help restructure a B.C. economy that can expect a major shift from forestry to grassland ranching in the years to come. The Liberals� B.C. team vows only to �build substantially on a $100 million down-payment to support mountain pine beetle eradication activities. In short, while the national media continues to dwell on a crucial city called Vote-Rich Ontario, it�s recognized that even vote-poor B.C. has more than its share of seats up for grabs.

The man likely to be elected the new prime minister in a week's time, Conservative leader Stephen Harper, said on Monday he wants to boost defense spending enough for the world to take notice.

With just a week until next Monday's election, Harper's Conservatives are enjoying a lead of eight to 13 percentage points in the polls over the Liberals, who have been in power since 1993. That margin puts them on the verge of winning a majority in Parliament.

The Liberals of Prime Minister Paul Martin have been hit hard by scandals, an ill-starred campaign and voter fatigue.

But Conservative strategists are watching to see if their lead in the polls will start eroding as it did in the 2004 campaign, when they were ahead by a smaller margin and ended up losing to Martin, despite a corruption scandal that weakened the Liberals.

"Well you never know. It could be another exit poll fiasco..the way it happened in India. BJP was winning according to exit polls remember? But see what happened in reality?", said one Indo-Canadian.

To be continued..

Part 1: The Desi Vote Machine

US schools to teach Hindi

JAN 16 - Hindi, including Arabic, Farsi, Chinese and Russian will soon be offered as foreign languages in American schools.

The initiative is expected to put these foreign languages on school curriculum from 2007.

The US government and intelligence agencies claim that a lack of enough foreign language speakers has the potential of creating severe security lapses.

Most schools teach French or Spanish as foreign language options, in fact Spanish is unofficially America's second language, but finding people proficient in languages other than these is often an uphill task.

In its statement the US government had said that an essential component of US national security in the post 9/11 world is the ability to engage foreign governments and peoples, especially in critical regions.

These critical regions are Middle East, Iran, China, Russia and China. India is being increasingly seen as the next big thing, which is why the US administration decided that people should be taught about India and its ways.

At the Institute for International Education, its Director Peggy Blumenthal says cultural pride is one of the reasons for America's language deficit, reported NDTV.

"I do think there is a sense of pride in culture that will make parents very excited about these new opportunities, she said.

From the kids point of view there is always pressure to integrate, Blumenthal added.

"Forget your culture and language to become American. We need to change that perception".

She added that the language initiative will not make children ashamed of their language.

Some US universities have had Hindi or Urdu language programs. Under the new initiative these programs are likely to get more federal support.

Ms Blumenthal says that no matter what the rationale, national security or otherwise, the fact that the government has recognized the lack of foreign language proficiency among its own people is a big step forward.

For the Indian American community whether its national security, improving economic relations or competitiveness - the inclusion of

Hindi in schools is one more in a series of signs of influence, success and assimilation in their home away from home.

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