There has been a surge in the number of asylum seekers from Bangladesh to Quebec in recent months.
Among them is Marjana Jannat Rahi, who arrived in Montreal in February with her parents and siblings, seeking protection.
“My dad — he was a businessman, and some politician or some people attacked my dad in his business place,” she told Global News. “Also, they attacked us.”
According to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), between January and June, just over 2,865 Bangledeshis claimed refuge in Quebec alone. Last year that number was just under 1,2090. At the current rate, there could be more than 5,000 claims in the province by the end of the year.
Based on IRCC data, Canada’s total could be five times what it was a year ago, at more than 22,000.
Bangladeshi Montrealer Abid Bahar, who has been concerned over the situation in the country for years, said the exodus of people isn’t surprising to him.
“Because oppression is becoming more and more,” he said. “The airports are full of people, jammed. They’re trying to leave the country.”
Attention has been focused on Bangladesh in the last two weeks as there have been deadly crackdowns by security forces on mostly student protesters. Internet services were also interrupted, sparking concern among relatives in Montreal who weren’t able to reach loved ones for days. The clash was over a government policy that reserved 30 per cent of public sector jobs for veterans of the independence war and their relatives.
That policy has since been rolled back.
But experts who have been watching the situation in the country for years, like Dolores Chew, professor of history and South Asian studies at Marianopolis College in Montreal, say the circumstances are complex.
“You have a large population of very young people who are unemployed or underemployed, and are struggling to make ends meet,” she said.
She noted that though the country was doing well economically, things took a turn for the worse following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic with the collapse of the garment industry, followed by the war in Ukraine, which affected fuel prices, among other factors.
According to Chew, there are also institutional problems.
“People have lost faith in the process because they feel the democratic voice is not being heard,” she said.
These are all things that worry Robayth Dhrubo, an international student from Bangladesh living in Montreal.
“The quality of living over there is very poor,” he said. “After the COVID-19, the inflation went high. It’s about to hit 10 per cent right now.
Bangladeshis in Montreal fear if things don’t improve in the South Asian country, the surge of asylum seekers will continue.