Immigration to Canada fell by about 8.5% between 2001 and 2002, says a new study, adding the downward trend was most significant in Toronto, which barely retained its position as the top North American destination for newcomers. The study suggests a growing inability in the federal immigration department to process visa applications from skilled workers during the last two years. It also reports a decline in the number of Canadians taking residence in the United States due to poor economic conditions in America. Much of the overall decline in the number of immigrants to Canada was attributed to the fall in the number of people accepted from Asia and the Pacific.

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There has been an increase in the number of Afghan refugees on hunger strike in Ixelles Saint Croix church in the United Kingdom. Several have been transferred to a nearby hospital. This group has been protesting since last Wednesday in reaction to the Refugee Commission’s decision to repatriate over a thousand Afghan asylum seekers over the next nine months. The Commissioner General for Refugees, Pascal Desment, said that the European Union has estimated that it is time for a repatriation operation to begin.

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Twelve men will appear in court today after a brief but violent clash between local men and Iraqi asylum seekers in the United Kingdom last weekend. The men are charged with several public order offenses, including carrying offensive weapons, causing criminal damage, and racially aggravated harassment. The incident is the latest in a series of clashes in Hull, where about 3,000 asylum seekers are believed to be living.

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The captain and eight crew members of a South Korean freighter were arrested last weekend for allegedly trying to smuggle 11 foreigners into Japan. The 11 people from five different countries tried to enter Japan without valid passports while traveling aboard the 2,628-ton freighter Jangwon-1.

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Border police in eastern Romania detained five illegal immigrants from India who had crossed the border from Moldova. The men were found about 10 kilometers from the Moldovan Border. This is the third group of Indian immigrants captured by Romanian border patrol recently.

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Former President Gustavo Noboa, under investigation for the mismanagement of Ecuador’s foreign debt negotiations, filed for political asylum in the Dominican Republic last Monday. Noboa said he couldn’t trust Ecuadorian investigators because they are under the thumb of his political enemies. In May, former President Leon Febres Cordero, now a legislator, asked the attorney general’s office to investigate Noboa’s handling of the debt negotiation, which he affirmed cost Ecuador $9 billion.

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Iris recognition machines, which can identify people by reading the distinctive pattern surrounding the pupil of the eye, will be installed at 10 British airports within a year. The final approval for Iris Recognition Immigration System (Iris) will depend upon the cost. The program, built after a trial at Heathrow last year, is likely to be focused in its initial phase on international commuters. Scanning cameras linked to a database will confirm the identity of previously enrolled passengers speeding them up past immigration queues. The drive to get Iris up and running suggests that there is support for iris recognition technology but no decisions have yet been made on whether to incorporate it into either passports or identity cards. Those decisions are likely to depend on the cost of launching a national enrollment program.

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A group of suspected child traffickers were arrested in London last week in an offensive involving more than 200 police officers. In total, 21 individuals were detained in the operation launched by detectives investigating the murder of a young boy. Officers raided nine addresses in east and southeast London early in the morning. Most of those detained are Nigerian nationals. They were arrested on suspicion of immigration violations, people trafficking, and passport offenses. They are suspected of bringing youngsters and adults through Europe. Commander Andy Baker of Scotland Yard stated that children were brought to the U.K. on false documents to carry out an elaborate benefit fraud, “slave” labor, or used in the sex industry.