Canada's policies force asylum seekers into US to face deportation, critics say

[BumRushDaShow]

2. The litigants are arguing that the U.S. should be removed from the list of "safe third countries"

given what has demonstrably occurred here in the past 18 months.

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Until 2004, asylum claims could be made at any legal port of entry in Canada, where they would then be processed and claimants admitted if their claim was approved.

That changed when Ottawa successfully lobbied for the passage of the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA), forcing migrants to make asylum claims in the country where they first arrived. It initially applied to land-based ports of entry – but not to irregular or unofficial crossings.

But advocacy groups and legal experts increasingly argue that the US should not be considered a safe third country. They point to the country’s long-term detention of those seeking refuge and threats to deport asylum seekers to countries where they could be harmed or killed.

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