It’s been 9 days since Haiti was struck by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake. The epicentre was just outside the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince. The city crumbled and the damage was widespread.
Promptly after the earthquake, U.S. President Obama announced that his administration will allow undocumented Haitians to remain in the U.S. temporarily.
What about Canada? Have we stopped deporting people back to Haiti?
After speaking with several senior immigration lawyers, I concluded that no one knows for sure. There have been no news releases from the authority Canada Border Services Agency.* (The latest news release as of today was posted in 2009.)
However, despite this, the lawyers seemed certain that deportation to Haiti has been halted because of logistical difficulties. The only airport in Port-au-Prince has been restricted to aid and evacuation purposes, while the coast is equally occupied by aid and military vessels. Therefore, deportation to Haiti is unlikely at the moment.
