Nearly four months after legislation was passed, the new Public Complaints and Review Commission designed to oversee the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the RCMP has yet to be established. The law, adopted on October 31, 2024, expands the role of the existing RCMP watchdog to include public complaints against the CBSA, a move long advocated by human rights groups.
However, the commission remains inactive, as the RCMP’s existing oversight body has been without a chairperson since Michelaine Lahaie’s term ended on January 1, with no replacement announced. Public Safety Canada has confirmed it is working on the commission’s implementation but has not provided a timeline.
Tim McSorley, national co-ordinator of the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group, highlighted the urgency of the commission amid heightened surveillance at the border. Critics, including McSorley and Gauri Sreenivasan of the Canadian Council for Refugees, fear that increased border enforcement measures, such as $1.3 billion in investments for surveillance technology, could lead to human rights violations, particularly against migrants.
Past concerns over the CBSA’s treatment of vulnerable individuals, including migrant detentions, deaths in custody, and family separations, underline the necessity of independent oversight. Sreenivasan criticized the lack of progress, calling the government’s silence “deafening.”
Public Safety Minister David McGuinty declined to comment, while complaints against the CBSA remain internally managed. The new commission is expected to address public complaints and investigate systemic issues within both agencies.
Source: Swifteradio.com
