Toronto Sun
October 9, 2006
A foolish appeal
Joe Taylor should remain a Canadian
By Peter Worthington
To the astonishment of many, the Canadian government is appealing a Federal Court "order" that it restore the citizenship of Joe Taylor.
Taylor is the 61-year-old son of a World War II Canadian soldier and British war bride, who the citizenship and immigration department claims is not a citizen because he was born out of wedlock in 1945 after his father was refused permission to marry prior to seeing action in France. His parents married when Joe's father survived France.
Joe and his mother arrived in Halifax in 1946 as full Canadian citizens, as decreed by the grateful government of Mackenzie King.
When Joe's parents divorced, he and his mother returned to England.
It wasn't until he returned to Canada in the 1990s that he discovered the father he had been told was dead had remarried and Joe had several half-brothers and sisters in B.C.
It was then he learned that his citizenship had been revoked.
A retired accountant with a pension, he wanted to live in Canada, and went to court against the Canadian government to fight for his citizenship.
On Sept. 1, Federal Court Justice Luc Martineau ruled across the board in favour of Taylor. He ordered the revocation of Taylor's citizenship be set aside, declared that Taylor was indeed a Canadian citizen and "directed" citizenship and immigration and the minister (Monte Solberg) to "issue a Certificate of Canadian Citizenship" to Taylor.
Citizenship Status
Earlier, Justice Martineau had suggested the government drop its case because if it won, the citizenship status of every WWII bride and offspring would be in jeopardy -- all because Joe had been conceived before his parents married.
It seemed a total victory for Joe Taylor and every WWII bride and child.
But no. Instead of complying, the Harper government is appealing.
"This is insane," says Kitchner-Waterloo MP Andrew Telegdi, Liberal citizenship critic and chairman of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration who often contested his own government's strange policies on the issue.
Telegdi held a press conference with NDP citizenship critic Bill Siksay. In attendance was Sen. Romeo Dallaire, retired lieutenant-general and himself a WWII baby, born in Holland to a Canadian soldier and Dutch mother.
Does the government want Dallaire's citizenship revoked?
Dallaire said it is "absolutely nonsensical" for the government to appeal.
"There is a term called 'bureaucratic terrorists' -- that's the gang in the middle of the system that has this power trip of authority and interpret things, not for the benefit of the citizen, but for the benefit of the government," he said.
"That is not their duty. Their duty is to make sure that the government is compliant with laws in order to help citizens -- not the other way around."
That's a succinct description of the bureaucracy that runs the country and, too often, manipulates elected representatives.
Solberg, who has no background in citizenship matters, is utterly dependent on the bureaucracy, whereas former citizenship critic Diane Oblonzky was informed and better qualified to head the portfolio.
Duty to Appeal
When Telegdi asked in question period to explain why he is appealing Justice Martineau's decision, Solberg replied that the court's decision "could cost tens of billions of dollars," and he had a duty to appeal.
"Rubbish," Telegdi said, pointing out that the judge ruled sections of the Citizenship Act "unconstitutional" and what the government is appealing is the restoration of one man's citizenship. Period.
"Tens of billions of dollars" seems fantasy.
Don Chapman, a Canadian-born, U.S. airline pilot who heads the Lost Canadians organization points out that Australia, South Africa, Mexico, Trinidad and the Philippines, all had discriminatory citizenship legislation similar to Canada's, and all have corrected it.
All their former citizens are now welcome home.
But not Canada.
Romeo Dallaire has it right with the "bureaucratic terrorists" observation.