all about wasta
-
In 1967, the Liberal government created the points system to assess potential immigrants based on human and social capital. Based on factors like age, education, training, desired job skills, proficiency in English or French, a personal evaluation by an immigration officer, family members in Canada, arranged employment, and employment opportunities in the destination area, this system assigned applicants a score.Those who achieved a pass mark of fifty points were allowed to enter the country. Although designed to be more objective than previous systems, this system continued to favour immigrants with a high level of education and skills.
There are many reasons why Canada agreed to take in the Ugandan Asians. The first and most humanitarian is the one that Pierre Trudeau publicly evoked by declaring that Canada had a moral duty to help people in need.
Secondly, the Canadian government justified its choice by highlighting a feeling of fraternity that would unite the Commonwealth countries. In addition, some Canadians justified the decision by seeing it as a form of reparation for past discrimination suffered by Asian communities in Canada.
One might think that Canada was acting purely out of altruism in its immigration policy, but there were other reasons for this decision as well. Ugandan Asians were often well-educated, highly skilled and promising entrepreneurs. Pierre Elliott Trudeau pointed out: "These people are not destitute refugees, they are the most desirable type of immigrants. It's a windfall for us." Which shows that he saw their arrival as an advantage for the country.
Finally, the Aga Khan's influence on Trudeau was considerable. The Aga Khan, spiritual leader of the Nizari Ismailis (the second largest Shia Muslim group in the world), had a personal connection to the situation, as many Asian Ugandans expelled were Ismailis. He was also a close friend of Trudeau and played a crucial role in influencing the decision. He made it easy to welcome their immigration by providing financial resources and by convincing Trudeau that this group would not become a "burden" on Canada. -
-