A national petition calling on the government to create a one-time permanent resident pathway for Ukrainians who recently immigrated to Canada has received tens of thousands of signatures since it launched last month. 

To explain the importance of the petition, Denys Storozhuk and Andrii Filipolych recently stopped by the NowMedia office to discuss it and other aspects of the war between Ukraine and Russia with video host Jim Csek.

The petition to the House of Commons was created in the middle of October because thousands of individuals who arrived in Canada under temporary emergency programs have been unable to access permanent residency. 

“This is the fact, these people (have) already (been) in Canada for the last three years,” said Storozhuk.

“They settled. They work, they pay taxes.”

Storozhuk said that because so many Ukrainians are unable to get permanent residency, they have to extend their work permit on the condition that they have a valid Ukrainian passport, something that can pose a problem because the country is still at war with Russia and its consulates and embassies are overwhelmed.

Another reason for the petition, Storozhuk pointed out, is that without permanent residency, many immigrants cannot “plan their life” because it is not guaranteed that their work permit will be extended.

“There is no guarantee for that, so they could not build their life in Canada. They could not make any plans,” Storozhuk added.

“They could not build anything because they think that at any moment our government may decide to send them back or just send them out of the country.”

The petition will stop accepting online signatures in the middle of February.

Alongside the discussion about the petition, the trio also touched on a number of topics related to the war between Ukraine and Russia, including Filipolych’s personal story about fighting in the war, everyday challenges faced by Ukrainians in Canada and much more.

Tickets for the third all-you-can-eat Ukrainian buffet fundraiser and art expo can be found online at this link.