There were four times more asylum claimants arriving at land border crossings than at airports in the first two months of 2017, new Canadian data show.In January and February, a total of 525 air travellers — 400 in Ontario, 90 in Quebec, 35 in British Columbia and nine in Alberta — sought asylum upon arrival at airports, said the Canada Border Services Agency. By contrast, 2,145 people crossed at official land border ports of item and made refugee claims during the same period, including 1,085 in Quebec, 905 in Ontario, 80 in Manitoba, and 35 each in Alberta and British Columbia.In addition to the migrants who made it through the border either legally or illegally and later filed what are known as “inland” claims, Canada received claims from a total of 5,520 refugees in the two months — a 48 per cent increase from the same period a year ago. The numbers of claimants arriving at land border crossings and airports for the same period of 2016 were not immediately available. Read more:Nearly half of Canadians support deporting people who are in Canada illegally, poll findsGiven Canada’s geographical isolation and the popularity of the United States as a destination for migrants, experts say, Ottawa historically received more refugees by air than at land borders. However, from 2013 to 2016, with tightening air travel restrictions, claims at airport arrivals have been surpassed by claims made at land ports of item from the U.S. by a one-to-two ratio. Experts say the sudden rise in land border claims can be attributed to the anti-immigrant and xenophobic policies of U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration as well as Canada’s full implementation of the new electronic travel authorization, or eTA, a screening mechanism that applies also to visa-exempt air passengers.“(The) airport was the easiest way, but because of the visa requirements, it is becoming more difficult to travel here by air than by land, ...
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