chinese nationals: What once was a shadowy, underground practice is now increasingly more open, as dozens of so-called baby houses have emerged in the city, according to Vancouver Courier. Many operators are advertising online, here and in China, that the practice is legal. Wealthy Chinese nationals are showing up at local doctor offices, cash in hand, with the intent of giving birth to obtain Canadian citizenship for their newborn babies.article continues below Trending StoriesI Watched This Game Canucks 2, Flames 5Canucks sign 55th overall pick Jonah Gadjovich to an entry-level contract5 things you didn't know about the Vancouver Police Department Vision hid from media in Saturday's byelectionrelated Birth tourism not impacting maternity care VCHBirth tourism fix gets cold shoulder from Liberals First Belleza baby bumped but hopefully not second Petition filed as non-resident births rise at Richmond Hospital They are here for that Canadian passport, said Xi An, the founder of the Vancouver Post-natal Care Association and the owner of the Richmond-based Icy Consulting firm, which helps provide services for women giving birth, including maternity care, arranging appointments and filing various paperwork. However, several concerns have emerged related to quality of care, healthcare access and the integrity of the citizenship process. Since the beginning of this year, An's customers from China have largely outnumbered her local ones it is common in Chinese culture to hire a caregiver . According to Vancouver Coastal Health, in the 2016-2017 fiscal year, there were 379 births to foreign nationals at Richmond Hospital. We have seen a large growth in the numbers of babies this year who are born here by non-Canadian parents, An told the Richmond News. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

elephant herds: Kabir said Sunday that four other people were injured in the attack and many others fled to safety, according to CBC. Authorities, aid workers in Bangladesh overwhelmed by Rohingya refugees Officials said the new camp was built in a forest area that was earlier frequented by elephant herds. District forest official Mohammed Ali Kabir says a herd of elephants entered the Balukhali camp in Ukhiya town early Saturday and trampled tents where several refugees were sleeping. It was the third attack by wild elephants on the refugees in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar district, which borders Myanmar. Bangladesh sees new surge of Rohingya refugees 'Human rights nightmare' in Myanmar could spread, UN chief warns More than 525,000 Rohingya refugees have fled Myanmar since late August and have taken shelter in Bangladesh. At least seven people died in the two previous attacks. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

freedom party: Near-final results from Sunday's balloting put his People's Party comfortably in first place, with 31.4 per cent of the vote, according to Metro News. The right-wing Freedom Party came in second with 27.4 per cent . The centre -left Social Democratic Party of Austria, which now governs in coalition with People's Party, got 26.7 per cent . Becoming head of government would be the next leap in a political career that started eight years ago when Kurz, then studying law, was elected chairman of his party's youth branch. While no party won a majority, the telegenic Kurz is most likely to be sworn in as Austria's next chancellor and Europe's youngest leader after the tough coalition government negotiations that lie ahead. Smart and articulate, he eventually caught the eye of People's Party elders. After a Social Democratic-People's Party coalition was formed four years ago, Kurz, then 27, became Austria's foreign minister the youngest top diplomat in Europe. He was appointed state secretary for integration, overseeing government efforts to make immigrants into Austrians, in 2011. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

immigration system: Canada's immigration system continues to be based on compassion, efficiency and economic opportunity for all, while protecting the health, safety and security of Canadians, reads a statement from Hussen to CBC News, according to CBC. Canada's system of immigration has been recognized internationally as a thoughtful, responsible approach that takes into consideration the need for more immigrants while balancing our fiscal and global responsibilities. Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen recently wrapped up cross-country consultations and is preparing to table the annual immigration levels in the House of Commons by the Nov. 1 deadline As he sets next year's target for the number of newcomers allowed into the country, the government's goal is to attract top talent in a competitive global market while reuniting families and offering refuge to people displaced by disaster and conflict. Conservative Immigration critic Michelle Rempel said the government has so far failed to develop a sound strategy to ensure immigrants help fill labour gaps in certain sectors and in remote and less populated parts of the country. Extreme change' in context Rempel said Canada's 2018 immigration plan must adapt to an extreme change in context, with a spike in asylum seekers and an escalating global migration crisis. More flexible citizenship rules kick in Half of border-crosser claims rejected Proposed changes to citizenship oath There are some bigger policy questions around how the government is incenting people in high unemployment areas to be matched with existing work, and how the government is going to seek to pull people that are coming into the country, new Canadians, instead of becoming isolated in small pockets in major urban centres, how perhaps those streams could be used to bolster immigration needs in areas of high demand in the country, where people aren't settling, she told CBC News. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

massachusetts institute: Vick Liu wanted to send them actual warmth, according to Metro News. The sophomore at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is creating a new line of sleeping bags designed for refugees who have few other options to keep warm during harsh winters in the Middle East. It wasn't enough to send warm wishes to refugees in Syria. An avid backpacker in his youth, Liu came up with the idea last year after reading about Syrian families who were struggling to survive freezing temperatures after fleeing the country's civil war. It's tough to stay warm at 15 degrees Fahrenheit with a couple blankets. The only way for them to create heat is through fire and through blankets, said Liu, a 19-year-old finance and political science student. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

princess: But she wanted to dress up in a beautiful costume, and a Native princess was the most beautiful thing she could imagine, according to Toronto Star. Her teacher sent her home with instructions to change her costume because it was offensive. As far as I know, my family has no Native ancestry. This left her baffled. Article Continued Below I think it's beautiful, too. I think it's beautiful, she said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

refugee camps: So when the rickshaw pullers, tea stall vendors and other villagers in northern Bangladesh's Mymensingh district were asked to give, they did -- in days raising 10,000 to donate to hospitals and refugee camps helping those who fled in what is now Asia's largest refugee crisis in decades, according to CTV. They came forward with whatever they had, whatever they could give us, said Mohammad Abdullah-al-Kafi, who helped collect the donations and then travelled to a refugee camp to hand them out. They had heard the stories of gunshot wounds and midnight escapes from angry mobs and soldiers. I could not hold my tears when we got there and saw their suffering. The sheer need of the Rohingya Muslims has inspired similar grassroots campaigns across Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority nation in which there is great sympathy for the Rohingya's tales of persecution and abuse in largely Buddhist Myanmar. We cried, and they cried as we distributed money. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rights commission: This is a big year for the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission, Mark Furey, the minister responsible for the commission, said in a release, according to The Chronicle Herald. What better way to celebrate a 50th anniversary than to recognize those who drive positive social change. Celebrating 50 years in existence, the human rights commission asks Nova Scotians to nominate individuals or groups for the 2017 Human Rights Awards. The minister said he encourages Nova Scotians to nominate individuals or organizations that are helping us build an inclusive province through respect for human rights. Award recipients are chosen in youth, individual and organization categories. The awards are presented each year by the commission and Partners for Human Rights, a group of organizations dedicated to creating more respectful communities through the promotion of human rights. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rohingya article: Read more UN says Burma violence a deliberate strategy to expel Rohingya Article Continued Below India's top court delays ruling on deportation of 40,000 Rohingya Muslims react-empty 157 The Rohingya are enduring a hell on Earth Six people, including the husband and a son of the dead woman, Taslima Siddique, were injured and admitted to a hospital, according to Toronto Star. Siddique was the mother of one of the children killed, but authorities were not sure which child was hers. The deaths of the woman; two girls, 9 and 6; and a boy, 1; were confirmed by Abdul Khayer, the officer in charge of the Ukhiya police station in the area. The deaths are the latest tragedy for members of the Muslim ethnic group, who were forced from their homes in Rakhine state in Burma in a brutal crackdown by the country's security forces that began in August. Survivors have detailed harrowing accounts of violence in their villages. The United Nations says the crackdown has amounted to ethnic cleansing. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rohingya muslims: Four other people, including the woman's husband, were injured in the attack, Kabir said, according to The Chronicle Herald. Many others fled to safety when they heard the elephants approaching. A herd of elephants entered the Balukhali camp in Ukhiya town early Saturday and trampled tents where several refugees were sleeping, said district forest official Mohammed Ali Kabir. Officials said the new camp was built in a forest area that was earlier frequented by elephant herds. More than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from Myanmar's Rakhine state to neighbouring Bangladesh since Aug. 25, when Myanmar security forces responded to attacks by a militant Rohingya group with a broad crackdown on the long-persecuted Muslim minority. The woman's husband, Abu Bakar Siddique, said Sunday that he had been released from the hospital, but that one of his children and some other relatives were still hospitalized. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

work-from-home entrepreneurs: He lives on an island with mountainous terrain surrounded by the sea; a place where whales and jet skis ply the waters once travelled by traditional longboats, according to National Observer. Though laid-back, the island is also peppered with leading-edge thinkers. His home, also an in-between kind of place, is close to Vancouver but a world away. Yahgulanaas is just another member of this island of commuters, creatives, and work-from-home entrepreneurs. His artistic vision has caught the attention of international museums that now press for more of his work and his ideas. He is also single-handedly staging an artistic and socio-political revolution. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

ahmed hussen: Among other things, the document directed applicants to specify their religion and how often they practice it, and asked opinions about head coverings associated with Muslim women and terrorist groups with mainly Muslim members, according to Toronto Star. That line of questioning is simply not consistent with the way we do things in Canada, Hussen said. Speaking in Vancouver on Friday, Ahmed Hussen described the Mounties' interview guide as unacceptable, saying it is incompatible with the government's anti-discrimination policy. It is unacceptable. Article Continued Below The questionnaire was used at a Quebec border crossing that saw thousands of asylum seekers enter from the U.S. over the summer. react-text 148 That line of questioning is simply not consistent with the way we do things in Canada, Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen said, describing the RCMP's interview guide that appears to target Muslim asylum seekers crossing the border. /react-text Colin Perkel / THE CANADIAN PRESS Hussen said he applauded Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale's decision to put a stop to the practice as soon as he found out about it.A spokesperson for Public Safety Canada said Thursday the questionnaire was only used locally and described the questions as inappropriate. react-empty 158 Asked about the document, an RCMP spokesperson said it had been revised and the Mounties would not be granting interviews on the topic. It is against our values as a society to treat everyone equally. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

home: They have good pensions and back home they were joiners, the kind of folks who belonged to many civic groups and led many of the community efforts in their town, according to The Chronicle Herald. They are sorely missed back home but eager to make new friends in Halifax, join groups and explore what the city has to offer. Upscale apartments and condos are filling up with 55-to-75-year-olds who hail from places like Truro, Pictou, Sydney, Wolfville, Bridgewater, Yarmouth and Amherst. As someone who grew up in Halifax and has called this place home for many years, I am surprised we don't make it easier for these newcomers to find out what we have to offer. But imagine you came here from Stellarton and moved to a complex on Larry Uteck Boulevard and then began to look for social engagement with folks with your interests. We are a tourist town, we market ourselves well and guide people to our well-known destinations like Citadel Hill, Peggy's Cove, the Public Gardens and the Historic Properties. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

non-leading countries: What is the world to do when Canada and many other leading countries are not leading Civil society and non-leading countries operate within the framework of the United Nations to stigmatize and delegitimize nuclear weapons, rendering them illegal, according to Toronto Star. Your editorial points to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's difficult position of having to deal with U.S. President Donald Trump on various cross-border issues as justification for his refusal to support the Ban Treaty. It is important to get facts and various opinions on this important issue. The US Mission to NATO memo directing NATO membership to vote no to Bill L41 the 2016 resolution to establish a mandate for nations to negotiate a nuclear weapon ban treaty was issued on Oct. 17, 2016, under former president Barack Obama's government, with all indications pointing to an upcoming Hillary Clinton election win. Article Continued Below Politics and posturing have delayed nuclear weapons abolition for too long. Canada voted no without Trump's input. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

ont .,: We lost everything, according to Toronto Star. I have no home to go back to, said Benjimine Camrane Joseph, who arrived on a farm in Tillsonburg, Ont., in April, to help with planting and harvesting of cucumbers, asparagus and peppers. The Category 5 storm which also paralyzed Puerto Rico ripped through the Caribbean island in September, flattening homes, destroying infrastructure, cutting off power and telecommunications, and killing dozens of people. Read more Hurricane Maria survivor returns home to Ontario Article Continued Below However, like others in Canada's seasonal agricultural worker program, Joseph must return home when his eight-month work permit expires on Dec. 15, as stipulated by the labour contract between his government and that of Canada. With the damage caused by Hurricane Maria, Joseph said he cannot afford a break from work. The 27-year-old said he sends home three-quarters of the money he makes in Canada to support his wife, son, parents and five brothers. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

parliament seats: A total of 16 parties are vying for 183 seats in the national parliament and will be chosen by Austria's 6.4 million eligible voters, according to Metro News. But less than a dozen parties have a chance of getting seats. The vote is coming a year ahead of schedule after squabbles led to the breakup last spring of the coalition government of the Social Democrats and the People's Party. The People's Party, which has shifted from centrist to right-wing positions, is leading in the pre-vote polls after an image make-over by its leader, 31-year-old Sebastian Kurz. Others that may clear the 4 per cent hurdle needed to get into parliament seats are the Greens, the liberal NEOS, and Liste Pilz, led by former Greens politician Peter Pilz. Austria's traditionally right-wing, anti-migrant Freedom Party is expected to come in second and the centre -left Social Democrats are thought to be trailing in third place. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

upend washington: Bannon is promoting challengers to GOP incumbents and the party's preferred candidates in next year's midterm elections, according to CTV. It's an insurgency that could imperil Republican majorities in the House and Senate. They include a convicted felon, a perennial candidate linked to an environmental conspiracy theory, and a Southern lawmaker known for provocative ethnic and racial comments. The emerging Bannon class of rabble-rousers share limited ideological ties but have a common intent to upend Washington and knock out Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., standard-bearer of the establishment. The main thing that binds them together is a rejection of the Republican Party establishment, a rejection of the political elites, the financial elites and the media elites, said Andy Surabian, a former Bannon aide and senior adviser to the pro-Trump PAC Great America Alliance. It's a crop of candidates that unnerves a GOP that lost seats and a shot at the Senate majority in 2010 and 2012 with political novices and controversial nominees and fears a stinging repeat in 2018. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

abushar: Abushar spoke at the Wicihitowin conference on reconciliation in Saskatoon Thursday, according to CBC. The session brought together newcomers and Indigenous people. Immigrants and refugees need to be involved as well, said the Open Door Society's Mohammad Abushar. A really good time to be alive in Saskatoon' City moving toward reconciliation, says cultural advisor We need to know about them' Newcomers experience Indigenous culture at Saskatoon showcase He said newcomers want to learn as much as they can about Indigenous culture, and the feeling is mutual. If you want to live together, you need to understand the other people's culture, Abushar said. Indigenous people love to learn about other cultures because we live together and we have to come together. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

ahmed hussen: Among other things, the document directed applicants to specify their religion and how often they practice it, and asked opinions about head coverings associated with Muslim women and terrorist groups with mainly Muslim members, according to CTV. That line of questioning is simply not consistent with the way we do things in Canada, Hussen said. Speaking in Vancouver on Friday, Ahmed Hussen described the Mounties' interview guide as unacceptable, saying it is incompatible with the government's anti-discrimination policy. It is unacceptable. The questionnaire was used at a Quebec border crossing that saw thousands of asylum seekers enter from the U.S. over the summer. It is against our values as a society to treat everyone equally. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

asian country: They should not be returned to camps, he said after addressing an informal, private Security Council meeting on the issue, according to Metro News. They need assistance to get their homes back. Myanmar's government needs to create conditions that will allow the refugees to return with dignity and with a sense of security and help them rebuild in violence-wracked Rakhine state, said Annan, who recently headed a commission on the crisis there. Myanmar's U.N. mission didn't respond to a request for comment on Friday's session. Roughly 1 million Rohingya make up a long-persecuted minority in the Southeast Asian country. The country's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, said Thursday that she had created a committee to oversee all international and local assistance in Rakhine and that the impoverished state needs development. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

children: Every day I check the mail to see if I got some good news, and every day I'm disappointed.'- Anitha Mahoro Mahoro ended up in Ottawa in September 2016, but left her husband and three children behind in a refugee camp in Rwanda, according to CBC. We had a house, we used to be a regular family. Anitha Mahoro fled Burundi after her cousin, Burundian state TV reporter Christophe Nkezabahizi, Nkezabahizi's wife and two children were shot dead by police in 2015 as violence flared over the controversial re-election of President Pierre Nkurunziza. One morning everything went away. Everything changed in my life, said Mahoro. Now I have nothing not my husband, not my children. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

circuit court: Attorney General Jeff Sessions argued it was wrong to apply an order nationally in a case brought by Chicago and that it should only apply to that city, according to The Chronicle Herald. Even before Friday's ruling, the Justice Department already took its objections about the injunction and other legal issues to the Chicago-based U.S. 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Harry Leinenweber's ruling comes a month after he imposed the preliminary injunction blocking the administration from tying the grants to two new conditions, that cities notify immigration agents when someone in the country illegally is about to be released from jail and allow agents easy access to jails. Leinenweber agreed in his written ruling that such a sweeping freeze was an extraordinary remedy that a U.S. district judge shouldn't resort to lightly. An injunction that only applied to Chicago would leave the Attorney General free to continue enforcing the likely invalid conditions against those applying for the public safety grants he wrote. But he said the legal issues in the Chicago case impact cities and counties nationwide and so a nationwide injunction is called for. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

itinerary: Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh in what the United Nations has called textbook ethnic cleansing, according to CTV. The itinerary makes no mention of a papal meeting with Rohingya in either country. The Vatican on Tuesday released the itinerary for the Nov. 26-Dec. 2 trip, which has taken on greater visibility since Myanmar security forces responded to Rohingya militant attacks with a broad crackdown in August. Francis, however, is likely to at least refer to their plight since he has already denounced the persecution of our Rohingya brothers on several occasions from the Vatican. Francis' first speech in Myanmar is likely to refer to the issue when he addresses Myanmar's top civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, government officials and Myanmar's diplomatic corps in the political capital, Nay Pyi Taw, on Nov. 28, his first full day of activities in the country. The trip motto is peace, harmony and love among people of different faiths. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

lieutenant governor: Lt, according to Metro News. Gov. Chris Christie defended his lieutenant governor on Friday over a campaign ad that was blasted by former Democratic Vice-President Joe Biden as the return of Willie Horton. Kim Guadagno's ad against Democrat Phil Murphy in the New Jersey governor's race shows Murphy saying he would have the back of those living in the country illegally. He said that Biden is just trying to say outrageous things to stay relevant because he wants to run for president. Christie said Friday he thinks Murphy's comments about making New Jersey a sanctuary state are fair game. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

nicholas keung: During his 14 years as the Star's Immigration reporter, Nicholas Keung has heard all sorts of claims made by individuals seeking to enter Canada as to why they should be admitted or not deported, according to Toronto Star. Similarly, he has reviewed countless decisions by Canada's immigration authorities denying or admitting immigration for various reasons. This week, we focus on how Nicholas Keung, the Star's Immigration reporter, exercises due diligence when reporting on refugee, migrant and diversity issues. When reporting stories about the country's immigration system, the challenge, Keung says, is making sure situations faced by those hoping to make a new life in Canada are accurately portrayed. Doing your due diligence is so important in this beat because people make assumptions, sometimes baseless, about immigrants and refugees, Keung said in an interview. Keung has developed a number of steps to ensure he gets as full a picture as possible from all sides steps that go to the heart of reader trust. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

program: The program is an alternative to standard hair-styling schools, according to CBC. Apprentices will not have to pay tuition to enroll, and will only be charged minimal fees for kits or other requirements. The program is open to anyone with a Grade 12 education or equivalent, but it's expected to particularly help refugees, immigrants and people who live in remote areas of Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia to cover tuition for apprenticeship training Mi'kmaq apprentices begin unique program to build a birchbark canoe Mostly, these fees can be covered by working at the salon because they'll be getting an income as they're training, said Dana Sharkey, executive director of the Cosmetology Association of Nova Scotia, which created the program in partnership with the Nova Scotia Apprenticeship Agency. Reaching out to immigrants Apprentices will be able to train at a salon closest to them. Apprentices will be required to work under a licensed and qualified hair stylist for up to three years, and to attend blocks of technical training at the Nova Scotia Community College. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.