Loss of right to vote for Canadians abroad

[lone wolf]

BTW ... it shows you edited....

 

[china]

Vote.... Run for office.... You really need to screw your head on tighter.

Ok ,i'll bite .

vote --a choice between 2 or more candidates or whatever. A prisoner can vote , right?
Now , a prisoner who is released can "run for an office ".Would you vote for that ex con? ...that's my question.

Cage ? Fight ?..................come to China and when you'll see me , you'll start calling me Sir ,right away , puppy .

 

[wulfie68]

This is the dichotomy:

Why should my only options be to become German or to move back to Canada?

This question is really the crux of the issue. The answer is how can there be any other options? There can't be without complicating far too many issues ranging from jurisdiction on legal matters, to financial liabilities etc. Its a fact of life that some countries offer different levels of service (and protection) to their citizens, thus there needs to be a clear dilineation on where the responsibility begins and ends to both the individual and the country.

Is this really the message we want to be sending?

its not so much a message as a standardization in dealing with people so they can all be dealt with fairly.

How is it not hypocritical to deny the right to vote for citizens based on residency outside of Canada and not grant it to permanent residents living in Canada for the same time period?

Citizenship has obligations as well as rights entitlements and priviledges. It is up to a person to decide whether or not they want to become a citizen and support a given country. If they choose to reside there and not undertake the full obligations of citizenship then they should not be granted the full rights of it.

If the citizenship doesn't matter in the one case, then how can it matter in the other?

It should in both cases.

In this case, what does citizenship become except the right to vote for residents? Since a resident could be Canadian in everything culturally but citizenship. If so, then what a meaningless thing it means to be a Canadian citizen.

There are other rights and priviledges that go along with being a citizen of Canada or any other country. You can look at the constitution for a complete run down.

 

[taxslave]

Sorry Niflmir, but, I disagree. Having people vote who don't pay taxes here, should have limits. If you want badly enough to have a say in the country, you should be in the country. The fact that your rights in that respect last for five years seems ample to me.

I think this is especially true for citizens of convenience like all the Lebonese that we air lifted to Canada a couple of years ago. The there are the Liberals who are so desperate that they voted in a leader who hadn't lived here for 30 years.

 

[gaiter83]

I think this is especially true for citizens of convenience like all the Lebonese that we air lifted to Canada a couple of years ago. The there are the Liberals who are so desperate that they voted in a leader who hadn't lived here for 30 years.

Do you think it is fair for someone who's ancestors have been in Canada since the 1640s and only found out about this law after being abroad for 6 years? It's not like they tell you when relocating that you are going to lose the right to vote, etc. Also, if you live/work in the U.S., you are not considered an immigrant and don't require a visa... I think I was considered a "legal non-immigrant resident alien", lol.

I was in the states for over 6 years and now live in The Netherlands... I still consider myself Canadian and always will.