Embassy Magazine – March 10, 2010 By Anca Gurzu Last June, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney publicly questioned the legitimacy of refugee claims made by Roma coming from the Czech Republic, saying they faced no real risk of state persecution. Only a few weeks earlier, Mr. Kenney had described asylum claims by US war deserters as “bogus,” and accused Mexican refugee claimants of systematically abusing the Canadian refugee system. The next month, the Canadian government imposed visa restrictions on visitors from both the Czech Republic and Mexico. Mr. Kenney’s comments-which recently saw him target several post-Olympic refugee claimants have illicited strong criticisms from experts and refugee advocates. But now a Toronto-based lawyer has asked a Federal Court to rule on whether the minister, by making the statements, has interfered in the Immigration and Refugee Board’s independence. Refugee lawyer Max Bergercompared the acceptance rates of Czech refugee claimants throughout the four quarters…
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