National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada
Letter to Minister Volpe, Citizenship and Immigration Canada

National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada c/o Philippine Women Centre of B.C.
451 Powell St., Vancouver, B.C. V6A 1G7

April 4, 2005

The Honourable Joe Volpe Citizenship and Immigration Canada Ottawa, Ontario K1A 1L1 Dear Minister Volpe, I write to urge you to act quickly to protect the rights and welfare of hundreds of Filipino domestic workers in Canada who face possible deportation under Citizenship and Immigration Canada's (CIC's) Live-in Caregiver Program (LCP).

As you know, 93% of LCP entrants are from the Philippines. We welcome your remarks in a CBC television interview aired on March 25, 2005 that reforms or "a complete overhaul" of the LCP could be anticipated by this summer. In CIC's January 2005 roundtable discussion on the LCP held in Ottawa, the National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada (NAPWC) called for the scrapping of the LCP and other temporary worker immigration programs.

We also urgently called for a review of the LCP's mandatory requirements such as the live-in requirement, the completion of 24 months of live-in work within three years and the employer-specific work permit. In our view, these requirements create the conditions for abuse and exploitation of Filipino domestic workers.

Through our community work, we have documented many cases of deportation of Filipino domestic workers who could not complete the 24 months within three years. After not being able to complete the 24 months, domestic workers may receive a departure / deportation order from CIC without any hearing or investigation into their circumstances. Many are unable to pursue legal remedies to challenge their deportation as they face economic hurdles to accessing the justice system.

Instead, many choose to voluntarily return to their country of origin, sometimes bringing with them their Canadian-born children. We ask that you seriously examine the roots of these deportation orders. These women (and a few men) do not complete their 24 months of live-in work for a variety of reasons.

For example, some are not able to work because of pregnancy or illness; others are dismissed from their jobs because of the passing away of the elderly in their care or changes to the financial circumstances of their employers. Others are unable to declare worked hours or months because of disputes with their employers or because they did not hold a valid working permit.

Many domestic workers experience long delays in the processing of their working permits and other required papers. Others have difficulty in finding new work.

While working under the LCP, domestic workers are offered little or no protection by the Canadian or Philippine government from abusive employers or scrupulous employment agencies. Those who are unable to complete their 24 months of live-in work are again offered little protection by the Canadian or Philippine governments.

We estimate that there are currently hundreds of Filipino domestic workers who live in constant fear and anxiety about their situation in Canada knowing that they may face deportation. We urge you to take immediate action on this matter to protect the rights and welfare of these migrant workers by implementing an immediate moratorium on deportations of domestic workers.

We remind you that both the UN Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the Human Rights of Migrants and the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women have made critical statements about the LCP. As an international champion of human rights, we urge Canada to sign and conform to the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.

Canada should also recognize the contribution of the estimated 90,000 Filipino migrant workers who have come here over the last twenty years. They have already contributed much to the Canadian economy, particularly in light of the lack of a universal day care program accessible to all Canadian women and families.

We look forward to your immediate and positive response, which will be shared with our member organizations across Canada.

Sincerely,
Cecilia Diocson Chairperson, National Alliance of Philippine Women in Canada

Cc: Member organizations of the NAPWC:

Filipino Nurses Association of Quebec Pinay (Montreal) Pilipino Migrante sa Canada (Ottawa) Philippine Women Centre of Ontario Philippine Women Centre of Manitoba KAMPI Women's Committee (Winnipeg) Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance (Vancouver) Filipino Nurses Support Group (Vancouver) Philippine Women Centre of BC BC Committee of Human Rights in the Philippines SIKLAB, B.C. (Sulong, Itaguyod ang Karapatan ng mga Manggagawang Pilipino sa Labas ng Bansa) (Advance and Uphold the Rights of Overseas Filipino Workers)