‘Strippergate’ exposes questionable immigration policy (Guest commentary)

Ottawa has been abuzz about the allegation an exotic dancer from Romania was improperly granted a work permit under a regulatory exemption from the requirement to obtain a ‘labour market opinion” from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC). The incident touched off a firestorm and brought demands for the resignation of Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Judy Sgro, whose office intervened to help the dancer with her immigration problems.

Canadian employers who offer jobs to foreign nationals normally must obtain a labour market opinion from HRSDC unless the work activity is covered by an exemption from the immigration regulations or an international treaty.

No justification was ever provided by either Citizenship and Immigration Canada or HRSDC as to what societal good was being promoted by the “exotic dancers” exemption, particularly in light of police agency concerns over growing problems with Eastern European crime syndicates in Canada.

The exotic dancers exemption was quickly cancelled and strip club owners complained of a politically motivated attempt to ruin their businesses, as they will now have to show that they cannot find dancers in Canada before offering to hire foreign strippers. They will be required to obtain labour market opinions from HRSDC prior to making work permit applications.

The outcry over the exotic dancers exemption is not new. Regardless of the nature of the allegations concerning the mishandling or special preference given to the exotic dancer in question, the larger debate should centre on whether Ottawa should adopt programs which benefit business activities that, although legal, are controversial at best.

It is common knowledge among international law enforcement agencies that there is a burgeoning worldwide traffic of women for the purposes of prostitution. Eastern European countries, including Romania, Ukraine and the former Soviet Union, are preferred recruiting grounds of women who, for a variety of reasons, wish to migrate to the West. Sometimes these women fully understand the nature of their work, but in other instances they are misled by sophisticated organized crime elements. Examples of abuses abound, including those of women who were misled and told they were going to have jobs as waitresses, but upon arrival in Canada were exploited, blackmailed or otherwise coerced into prostitution.

As the U.S. Department of State’s Report on Human Trafficking, published in 2001, noted: “Many trafficking victims fall prey to this practice because they seek a better life or enhanced economic opportunities. They are, therefore, vulnerable to false promises of good jobs and higher wages. Political instability, militarism, civil unrest, internal armed conflict and natural disasters may result in an increase in trafficking. The destabilization and displacement of populations increase their vulnerability to exploitation and abuse through trafficking and forced labour.”

Against that backdrop, it is difficult to understand why Canada, a signatory to the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, part of the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (2000), would have any interest in providing an exemption from the immigration regulations to an industry which acts as a magnet for potential abuses.

Strip club owners contend that there is a labour shortage in Canada and not enough local women are willing to work in their establishments. However, reliable industry data indicating such labour shortages in this area is severely lacking. The phenomenon of hiring exotic dancers from Eastern Europe appears to be more a function of the collapse of the former communist block and the newly gained freedom of movement for its citizens, coupled with the activities of organized crime, than of any labour shortages. The exemption for exotic dancers provided a wide avenue through which both recruiters and the women themselves could realize their objectives of profit and better lives respectively.

The removal of the exemption for exotic dancers does not mean that foreign strippers will be unable to come to Canada, but rather that strip club owners will now have to obtain the appropriate HRSDC confirmation for the position and that the foreign women who wish to engage in that activity will have to demonstrate their abilities and subject themselves through a more thorough check.

It remains to be seen whether the steady stream of foreign exotic dancers will continue, or if strip club owners will be forced to be more creative in their local hiring efforts. In any event, granting a regulatory exemption to exotic dancers does not appear to advance any worthwhile policy goal and has little or no justification in the context of current efforts to combat international human trafficking and organized crime.

Sergio Karas, a Toronto-based lawyer, is a certified specialist in Canadian citizenship and immigration law. He may be contacted at (416) 506-1800, [email protected] or visit www.karas.ca.

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