United States President Donald Trump has added Venezuela, North Korea, and Chad to the list of countries directly affected by a so-called ‘travel ban’, in doing so severely limiting the ability of some people from those countries to enter the US.
The three additions to the list join Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, and Somalia, whose citizens were affected by other bans rolled out earlier this year. Sudan, which was on the original list, is no longer listed. In the case of Venezuelans, only select government officials are banned. However, heightened security screening, or vetting, may impede other travelers from that country, as well as people looking to immigrate.
The new order is set to take effect on October 18. A previous order, which expired on Sunday, September 24, is set to go before the Supreme Court, which will hear arguments about its constitutionality on October 10. “The fact that Trump has added North Korea – with few visitors to the U.S.
Venezuela
The United States is Venezuela’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade in goods between the countries having reached $23.9 billion in 2015. More than 320,000 US residents trace their heritage to Venezuela.
More recently, the South American country has descended into political and economic turmoil, with anti-government street protests a daily occurrence. Inflation, unemployment, and crime have all soared.
The US administration’s order states that ‘Venezuela’s government fails to share public-safety and terrorism-related information adequately,’ and consequently ‘the restrictions imposed by this proclamation focus on government officials of Venezuela who are responsible for the identified inadequacies.’
Further, ‘nationals of Venezuela who are visa holders should be subject to appropriate additional measures to ensure traveler information remains current.’
The Canadian context
Current and future visitors to North America should note that their permission to enter Canada is not affected by the US travel ban. The government of Canada places no country-by-country restrictions, and assesses applications to come to Canada on the existing regulations, which are generally perceived around the world as being open and welcoming.
A startling example of the differences between the two countries may be seen in how their respective governments responded to cases of displaced Syrians fleeing that country’s ongoing civil war. While the US has now imposed an indefinite blanket ban on all Syrians, last year Canada successfully resettled 46,700 Syrian refugees, while also protecting Canadians’ security by vetting those newcomers.
In addition, for many decades Canada has offered a range of economic and family reunification programs with criteria that do not include assessing a person based on nationality.
