I am a landed immigrant of two and a half years standing, living in
lovely Victoria BC. My wife and I pay income and property taxes,
involve ourselves in the community and have a young son growing up
to become, what we hope, a good Canadian, imbued with all the
values so distinctively Canadian. Yet we cannot vote, a right so
intrinsic to a democracy. The Americans went to war with England
ostensibly on the principle, that there can be no taxation without
representation. We will never bear arms against Canada but we are
being deprived of representation. Is a landed immigrant so foreign
a creature that she/he cannot be an elected representative or even
simply vote in municipal, provincial of federal elections but can
be penalized for not meeting its expenditure, raised through taxes?
To be a landed immigrant we had to meet the stingent conditions
rightly imposed by Canada, but is the oath of allegiance (on
naturalization) so important a criteria, (to deny electoral
representation), in a country that even recognizes dual
citizenship?
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