A new citizenship guide for potential immigrants flatly declares that new Canadians cannot engage in barbaric cultural practices such as genital mutilation and "honour killings."
The new guide, released yesterday by Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, says in a section called "Equality of Women and Men" that such practices are illegal and severely punishable under Canada's criminal laws.
"Multiculturalism doesn't mean that anything goes. Multiculturalism means that we celebrate what's best about our backgrounds, but we do so, on the basis of common Canadian values and respect for our laws," said Kenney. "It's no secret that we've seen instances of culturally rooted abuse of women, so-called 'honour killings,' forced marriages, and spousal abuse, and even female genital mutilation. We want to make sure that people understand that multiculturalism doesn't create an excuse to engage in those barbaric cultural practices."
The updated guide, called "Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship," also puts greater emphasis on the obligations of citizenship, such as getting a job, as well as military history.
The Bloc Québécois believes the new citizenship guide marginalizes Quebec's status as a nation, and the role of French-Canadians as one of two founding groups of Confederation. The new guide describes Canada's three founding peoples as Aboriginal, French and British, while historically it's generally been only the latter two. Bloc citizenship and immigration critic Thierry St-Cyr believes it's important to acknowledge the contributions of First Nations in Canada's history, but said the guide is rewriting that role.
St-Cyr was also critical of the guide for touting the benefits of the monarchy and suggestions that the Queen is a "symbol of Canadian sovereignty" who plays an important role in encouraging Canadians "to give their best to their country."
He said it should instead explain more about the political realities of Quebec and what makes it distinct.
A new citizenship guide for potential immigrants flatly declares that new Canadians cannot engage in barbaric cultural practices such as genital mutilation and "honour killings."
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