Daughter of migrant farm worker wins scholarship to Brock
Sayuri
Gutierrez, whose father is a Mexican seasonal agricultural worker, has
received a scholarship for children of Niagara's migrant workers to
attend Brock.
Enter the migrant advocacy group Dignidad Obrera Agricola Migrante (Dignity for Agricultural Migrant Workers) and Richard Mitchell, associate professor of child and youth studies at Brock. They, along with associate theatre professor David Fancy, Vice-Provost Kim Meade, Director of Student Awards Rico Natale, and various Brock University Students' Union representatives decided to support the educational dreams of Niagara's migrant workers and their children.
The result was the Migrant Children's Education Award, the only university-based award of its kind in Canada, with 18-year-old Sayuri Gutierrez as its first-ever recipient. Gutierrez is also the first one in her family to go to university.
"I feel proud because I'm the daughter of a migrant worker," Gutierrez says. "The son or daughter of a migrant worker studying in Canada, it sounds impossible when you're in your home country."
Mitchell explains that the educational award is one way Brock puts into practice the principles of sustainability. He says the widely referenced United Nations' definition is simply present generations leaving enough of the earth's resources for future generations.
"Since Brock is one of a handful of universities in Canada to be located in a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Biosphere Reserve, this gives the university the opportunity to practise sustainability through these international lenses," Mitchell says.
Such innovative approaches are also in line with Brock's 2014 Integrated Strategic Plan, he says, and are typical of the transdisciplinary initiatives being investigated by the Environmental Sustainability Research Centre (ESRC) where he and Fancy are associate faculty members.
But it's not just the physical environment that needs to be protected and cared for, Mitchell notes.
"To try and understand sustainability without looking at the people who are working on the land doesn't work," he says when explaining the award's creation.
"It's these kinds of intersections between and amongst education, science, and culture that brought me to notice the migrant agricultural workers in the Niagara Region. They bring so much prosperity for all of us and yet their experiences are often that of social exclusion, marginalization and even discrimination."
Sayuri Gutierrez can attest to that. She and her family were on the verge of being deported in June but were granted residency on compassionate grounds. Her father suffers from kidney disease and would be unable to afford life-saving treatment in Mexico.
Gutierrez will study psychology.
"My family had gone through so many things," she says. "I saw how a psychologist was working with my brother when he had his traumas. My mother was going into depression. One day, I thought being in psychology would be a good idea to help people that have family issues or children who go through hard times."
Gutierrez says receiving the scholarship was like "winning the lottery," ensuring her and her family's future.
"I have to go to university and fulfill that promise I made to my grandmother."
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Abuse of migrant workers `endemic' in Canada, new study says
by Nicholas Keung
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1257536--abuse-of-migrant-workers-endemic-in-canada-new-study-says
Link to the full study: http://metcalffoundation.com/publications-resources/view/made-in-canada/
The moment Liliane arrived in Toronto from Uganda as a live-in caregiver, her boss seized her work permit and passport. For two years of work, she was only paid a total of $2,100.
Senthil Thevar was promised $15 an hour by a recruiter in India to work as a chef in a Toronto restaurant. Instead, he only earned $8 hourly, sharing accommodation in a cold basement, with no vacation and holidays.
On paper, Tanzanian taxidermist Juma was supposed to make $16.08 an hour to make animal specimens in Canada. His boss wrote him a $3,168 paycheque each month, but Juma must immediately withdraw the money and pay it back as "my taxes."
It might seem these migrant workers just happened to be struck by bad luck — and unscrupulous employers. But a new report released Monday by the Metcalf Foundation says Canada's current immigration and labour laws virtually doom temporary migrant workers to mistreatment.
"The exploitation is not isolated and anecdotal. It is endemic. It is systemic," the report says.
"The depths of the violations are degrading. There is a deepening concern that Canada's temporary labour migration programs are entrenching and normalizing a low-wage, low-rights `guest' workforce."
Migrant workers in Canada have tripled in the past decade, to 300,111 in 2011 — about one-third of them in low-skilled jobs, according to the report titled "Made in Canada: How the Law Constructs Migrant Workers' Insecurity."
While stories of migrant worker abuse are not new, the study by Osgoode Hall Law School professor Fay Faraday examined the legislative and regulatory practices to get to the root causes of the issues faced by migrant workers like Liliane and Juma, who are profiled but not fully identified in the report. Thevar, who was also profiled in the report, has spoken to the Star previously and has agreed to be identified by his last name.
"This is the road map for understanding how these workers' insecurity is built by law. The law doesn't only create vulnerability but it fails to address exploitation and allows it to flourish," said Faraday, who specializes in constitutional law, human rights and labour issues.
Canada has several programs to bring in low-skilled temporary migrant workers: live-in caregivers, seasonal farm workers and a 10-year-old pilot project that lets in workers in diverse sectors such as agriculture, restaurants, food processing, cleaning, construction, road building and tourism.
Those who come in through the pilot project are among the fastest growing group, rising 22-fold from 1,304 in 2002 to 28,930 in 2010, the most recent figure available.
Unlike the caregivers and farm workers, Faraday said, other low-skilled migrant workers are particularly vulnerable to abuse because they have no access to permanent residency and there is little program oversight by Canada and the foreign governments where these workers originate.
"The evolution of these temporary migration programs shows a progressive stepping down in government's commitment to workers and government involvement and accountability in program administration," the report noted.
"While government creates the conditions which allow the migrant work relationships to be formed, the supervision of the relationship is increasingly privatized between employer and worker."
The report concludes it is key to grant migrant workers permanent resident status upon arrival to address their precarious working conditions and exploitation.
It also recommends a stronger legislation to govern worker recruitment like the one introduced in Manitoba, sector- or province-specific work permits that allow migrants freedom to choose employers and the right to unionize and bargain collectively.
"The fundamental recommendation of this report is that workers of all skill levels must have access to apply to immigrate and to arrive with full status as permanent residents," Faraday said.
The Metcalf Foundation, a Toronto-based private family foundation, invests $5 million a year in projects and research in performing arts, environment and improving the lives of low-income peoples.
How Manitoba protects migrant workers
• Recruiters and employers are banned from charging or passing fees to migrant workers.
• Employers cannot hire a foreign worker without first registering with the province and providing details about the business, attempts to hire Canadians and duration of the job. The federal government will not process unregistered employers' applications for work permits.
• No recruiter can recruit foreign workers without a provincial licence and no employer can use a recruiter who is not licensed in Manitoba. Licenses are only valid for one year to ensure ongoing monitoring.
• Recruiters must deposit with the province an irrevocable $10,000 credit, which will be used to pay back fees owed to a migrant worker if the law is breached.
• Employers are required to submit each worker's name, address, phone number, job title and work location into a data bank to facilitate monitoring.
by Nicholas Keung
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1257536--abuse-of-migrant-workers-endemic-in-canada-new-study-says
Link to the full study: http://metcalffoundation.com/publications-resources/view/made-in-canada/
The moment Liliane arrived in Toronto from Uganda as a live-in caregiver, her boss seized her work permit and passport. For two years of work, she was only paid a total of $2,100.
Senthil Thevar was promised $15 an hour by a recruiter in India to work as a chef in a Toronto restaurant. Instead, he only earned $8 hourly, sharing accommodation in a cold basement, with no vacation and holidays.
On paper, Tanzanian taxidermist Juma was supposed to make $16.08 an hour to make animal specimens in Canada. His boss wrote him a $3,168 paycheque each month, but Juma must immediately withdraw the money and pay it back as "my taxes."
It might seem these migrant workers just happened to be struck by bad luck — and unscrupulous employers. But a new report released Monday by the Metcalf Foundation says Canada's current immigration and labour laws virtually doom temporary migrant workers to mistreatment.
"The exploitation is not isolated and anecdotal. It is endemic. It is systemic," the report says.
"The depths of the violations are degrading. There is a deepening concern that Canada's temporary labour migration programs are entrenching and normalizing a low-wage, low-rights `guest' workforce."
Migrant workers in Canada have tripled in the past decade, to 300,111 in 2011 — about one-third of them in low-skilled jobs, according to the report titled "Made in Canada: How the Law Constructs Migrant Workers' Insecurity."
While stories of migrant worker abuse are not new, the study by Osgoode Hall Law School professor Fay Faraday examined the legislative and regulatory practices to get to the root causes of the issues faced by migrant workers like Liliane and Juma, who are profiled but not fully identified in the report. Thevar, who was also profiled in the report, has spoken to the Star previously and has agreed to be identified by his last name.
"This is the road map for understanding how these workers' insecurity is built by law. The law doesn't only create vulnerability but it fails to address exploitation and allows it to flourish," said Faraday, who specializes in constitutional law, human rights and labour issues.
Canada has several programs to bring in low-skilled temporary migrant workers: live-in caregivers, seasonal farm workers and a 10-year-old pilot project that lets in workers in diverse sectors such as agriculture, restaurants, food processing, cleaning, construction, road building and tourism.
Those who come in through the pilot project are among the fastest growing group, rising 22-fold from 1,304 in 2002 to 28,930 in 2010, the most recent figure available.
Unlike the caregivers and farm workers, Faraday said, other low-skilled migrant workers are particularly vulnerable to abuse because they have no access to permanent residency and there is little program oversight by Canada and the foreign governments where these workers originate.
"The evolution of these temporary migration programs shows a progressive stepping down in government's commitment to workers and government involvement and accountability in program administration," the report noted.
"While government creates the conditions which allow the migrant work relationships to be formed, the supervision of the relationship is increasingly privatized between employer and worker."
The report concludes it is key to grant migrant workers permanent resident status upon arrival to address their precarious working conditions and exploitation.
It also recommends a stronger legislation to govern worker recruitment like the one introduced in Manitoba, sector- or province-specific work permits that allow migrants freedom to choose employers and the right to unionize and bargain collectively.
"The fundamental recommendation of this report is that workers of all skill levels must have access to apply to immigrate and to arrive with full status as permanent residents," Faraday said.
The Metcalf Foundation, a Toronto-based private family foundation, invests $5 million a year in projects and research in performing arts, environment and improving the lives of low-income peoples.
How Manitoba protects migrant workers
• Recruiters and employers are banned from charging or passing fees to migrant workers.
• Employers cannot hire a foreign worker without first registering with the province and providing details about the business, attempts to hire Canadians and duration of the job. The federal government will not process unregistered employers' applications for work permits.
• No recruiter can recruit foreign workers without a provincial licence and no employer can use a recruiter who is not licensed in Manitoba. Licenses are only valid for one year to ensure ongoing monitoring.
• Recruiters must deposit with the province an irrevocable $10,000 credit, which will be used to pay back fees owed to a migrant worker if the law is breached.
• Employers are required to submit each worker's name, address, phone number, job title and work location into a data bank to facilitate monitoring.
--------------
La Patrulla Fronteriza, asesinos de mexicanos
El lunes 3 de septiembre de 2012, mientras
celebraba con su familia el cumpleaños de su hija y de su esposa,
Guillermo Arévalo Pedraza, de 36 años de edad, fue asesinado por
oficiales de la Patrulla Fronteriza de Estados Unidos.
El evento quedó incluso registrado en un video que uno de los asistentes alcanzó a filmar. El abuso de los oficiales estadounidenses es claro y evidente; después de patrullar el río a bordo de una lancha deciden abrir fuego de manera indiscriminada contra civiles mexicanos desarmados, que se encontraban en territorio nacional.
Días después, a través de un breve comunicado, la Patrulla Fronteriza admite que tres de sus agentes dispararon, tras, según ellos, ser atacados. Afirman que agentes asignados a la Unidad de Marina, "descargaron un arma" al ser "sometidos a rocas lanzadas contra ellos desde el lado mexicano".
En el texto de un solo párrafo, la corporación no hace ninguna mención a que los disparos hubieran podido alcanzar a una persona y darle muerte del lado mexicano.
En el video se puede apreciar que en ningún momento los agentes de la Patrulla Fronteriza son objeto de agresión alguna, y más bien son ellos los que, en una actitud provocadora, interrumpen la tranquilidad de los ciudadanos que en territorio mexicano disfrutaban de una celebración.
El argumento de las autoridades estadounidense, de que fueron agredidos con piedras, parece ser ya parte de un discurso oficial que se maneja siempre que hay abusos por parte de sus oficiales.
Recordemos que apenas el pasado 7 de julio, en la frontera de Brownsville, Texas, un incidente muy similar ocurrió.
En aquella ocasión dos agentes fronterizos dispararon en el margen norte del Río Bravo, luego de que uno de ellos fuera presuntamente atacado a pedradas. Poco después, las autoridades mexicanas localizaron el cuerpo de Juan Pablo Pérez Santillán, de 29 años de edad.
El hecho de que la Patrulla fronteriza sea agredida con piedras, situación que en el asesinato de Guillermo Arévalo Pedraza claramente no sucedió, como lo avala el video que es ya de conocimiento público, no justifica, de ninguna manera, el uso desproporcionado de fuerza letal contra mexicanos que se encuentran en territorio nacional.
Es claro que existe un alevoso patrón de conducta por parte de esta agencia estadounidense. Una prepotencia e impunidad que atenta contra los derechos fundamentales de los mexicanos que viven en la frontera, que lesiona la dignidad de México y lastima la relación entre los dos países.
Lamentablemente, el que exista evidencia contundente de este crimen, en la forma de un video, no garantiza de ninguna manera que se vaya a hacer justicia: en el 2010 el asesinato de Sergio Hernández Gúereca, de 14 años de edad, fue también grabado.
El uso desproporcionado de la fuerza por parte de un agente, quien disparó y mató al joven mientras este huía, fue visto por millones. Sin embargo, ante las abrumadoras pruebas, la Oficina de la Fiscalía en Texas señaló que no existió "suficiente evidencia" para presentar cargos contra el agente, luego de una investigación de dos años.
No cabe duda que la xenofobia manifestada por la Patrulla Fronteriza de Estados Unidos, así como el absoluto desdén hacía los derechos humanos de nuestros migrantes, está adoptando una nueva modalidad. Una mucho más ominosa y de por más agraviante: los agentes de ese país ahora están asesinando a compatriotas nuestros en territorio mexicano, sin ninguna justificación.
Guillermo Arévalo Pedraza fue asesinado, de un balazo en el pecho, mientras convivía con su familia. Ante esto no cabe ningún argumento legal que justifique el "uso razonable de la fuerza", o un "acto de autodefensa". De igual manera carece de sustento cualquier mención a los protocolos o políticas de la corporación estadounidense.
Queda claro que la Patrulla Fronteriza viola los derechos esenciales de los mexicanos, actuando fuera del marco legal que contemplan diversos acuerdos y protocolos bilaterales en materia de violencia fronteriza. Se trata pues, de un hecho inaceptable. Uno que se suma a la ya muy larga lista de agravios.
Ante la gravedad de este asunto el Gobierno Mexicano no se puede dar el lujo de continuar con la lógica diplomática de los "enérgicos rechazos". Esto es, ante todo, un ataque a la soberanía nacional, y es en ese entendimiento que medidas mucho más severas deben ser emprendidas.
La Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores debe presentar, en el momento procesal adecuado, la solicitud de detención provisional con fines de extradición del agente que resulte culpable. Si el Gobierno de Estados Unidos solapa, una vez más, a sus agentes asesinos, tal vez sería momento de replantearnos la política de extradición que actualmente tenemos con ese país. Sería justo y necesario.
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