Quote:
Originally Posted by Huntingwhale
The Canadian government already does this with many countries. This is nothing new and has been in place for years. When Russia invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea, visa restrictions to Canada were placed on Russian citizens. I know for a fact it's hard as hell for Russians to come to visit here. It's still possible, but not without jumping through many hoops and some good luck. That's the whole point of visa restrictions; make it difficult for people to visit in the hopes that they complain to their leaders and eventually changes are made.
Can you tell me how did those visa restrictions hurt everyday Canadian citizens? How did it strengthen Russia, like you say it would strengthen China? At one point before Romania was EU, Romania had lax visa entry to Canada, and blatant corruption and human rights abuse caused Canada to reverse that after 6 months. How was Canada hurt and Romania made stronger from that? Canada took a stand on what was happening in those countries and one way to do that is act on visa issuances. All countries do it. It's nothing new ever since international travel was a thing.
It's not stupid like you say. It's very much a thing, and Canada needs to adjust their visa policy with China in accordance with their recent actions. After all, ease of visa entry to Canada is based on the 7 things I wrote in my original post;
socio-economic conditions
immigration issues
travel document integrity
safety and security issues
border management
human rights issues
bilateral considerations
Immediately, three of those points pop out as being a concern. 4, 6 and 7. So it makes no sense to keep our visa regulations with China the same. Those are our stipulations to easily visit Canada and China has broken them. Changes should be made in accordance with our own policy.
If anything, your post of sitting by and watching what Australia and America and how it plays out is what's foolish. Sit by and do nothing, that is your solution? Be reactive instead of proactive? Obviously it's a complex issue as, like it or not, China is intertwined in our economy. And it will be painful to break that hold. But Canada will need to go through some short-term pain for long-term gain with China. In a country of 38M vs 1.4B it's going to be a monumental task. But sitting by and hoping the US and Australia figure out how to do it is not feasible for now and the future.
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When did Russian, Ukrainian or Romanian students represent a 4 billion dollar contribution to the economy in Canada each year? Or when did those countries have the largest number of students going on to be top-tier researchers in critical industries for the future, such as AI?
The US, with its current moves to restrict visas stands to lose 32% of the world's top AI talent. Is that a recipe for success? Canada should be jumping at the opportunity to bring those students and workers in, including those from China. The more of that talent that goes on to China, the more China benefits.
I would agree that Canada should, long ago, have spent more time looking at investment immigration and people exploiting loopholes to move large sums of money into Canada, often money gained illegally. But punitive action against the majority who come as students or doing business should not be viewed as necessary. They are people making big contributions to Canada's economy. Research also indicates that Chinese students who feel discriminated against just turn to support the CCP more, and the effect is most dramatic among those who were initially most open to accepting democratic ideals. Already inside China there is a turning away from the West as a result of Trump's trade war. It's not weakening support for the CCP. It's strengthening support.
Really, why are you insisting that visa restrictions must be the way to go, as if punishing the average Chinese student or business person and the Canadian schools and businesses that work with them is the only way the country can respond?