YUEN PAU WOO and DON DE VORETZ

Tuesday, July 11, 2000

Canadian officials are bracing for another wave of "irregular" Chinese immigrants arriving on the shores of British Columbia. They will count themselves lucky not to match the macabre discovery by customs officers in Britain two weeks ago -- 58 would-be illegal immigrants suffocated in the back of a cargo truck. However, the spotlight on illegal migration has distracted attention from the importance of China as Canada's top source of legal immigrants and the wider issues surrounding immigration policy.

Nearly 29,000 mainland Chinese landed in Canada last year -- 15 per cent of Canada's world total. Queues at the Canadian embassy in Beijing suggest the number of successful applicants is constrained only by the processing capacity of embassy staff.

It is conventional wisdom that economic development in China will diminish the numbers wanting to emigrate, but in the short run, development may actually accelerate migration. Educated Chinese -- the backbone of China's development strategy -- seek entry into Canada to pursue career opportunities not yet available there.

Most legal Chinese immigrants come to Canada as skilled workers, rather than as investors or entrepreneurs. Along with other skilled immigrants, the inflow of Chinese talent is supposed to compensate for our brain drain to the United States. Anecdotal evidence suggests, however, that in many cases these talents are being wasted. Migrants have difficulty finding suitable work, or their credentials are not recognized, so they settle for jobs in fields unrelated to their training. Some leave for the United States, probably under temporary work visas. A common saying in China refers to "taking the curved route to save the country," alluding to Chinese immigrants using Canada as a first stop to their final destinations in the United States.

If Chinese skilled workers are part of Canada's brain drain to the United States, they are also part of China's brain drain to the world. In fact, China is far more concerned about its brain drain than the issue of illegal migrants, who make up a tiny fraction of the estimated 150 million surplus workers looking for work.

The crux of the problem Ottawa faces in dealing with China over immigration is that the issues of greatest concern to one side are of relatively low interest to the other. As a result, co-operation on immigration tends to be slow, ad hoc, and highly dependent on the broader political relationship. Canadian Immigration Minister Elinor Caplan was successful in getting the Chinese authorities to accept the return of the first load of deported illegals recently, but only after almost a year of haggling. While she is absolutely right in "closing the back door, while at the same time opening more widely the front door," Chinese officials are ambivalent, at best, about such hospitality offered to their most talented citizens.

Canada's immigration policy toward China is about much more than numbers. It is about engaging the Chinese government on issues that are of importance to them as well as on issues that are of concern to us. Since both countries suffer from a brain drain, there should be ample ground for dialogue.

Increasing temporary student visas for Chinese and an expanded scholar exchange program could lead to greater co-operation. The best way to win the attention of China on curbing unexpected arrivals in Canada is to demonstrate our commitment to a bilateral immigration policy that is based on long-term mutual benefit.
Yuen Pau Woo is vice-president of research at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. Don De Voretz is a professor of economics at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver.

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