BARBARA PORTEOUS IS FEISTY . . . AND CANADIAN!
(OSOYOOS TIMES — April 25, 2007) —
If you look up the word 'feisty' in the dictionary, Osoyoos resident Barbara Porteous' picture isn't there “ but it should be!rnThe 70-year-old great-grandmother was dealt an injustice by an arcane clause in the Citizenship Act that was in effect from 1947-77.
It stated that if you lived outside of Canada on your 24th birthday, you had to sign a certain form or you would lose your Canadian citizenship.
For 46 years she was unaware that technically she had lost her citizenship in mid-1960.
She wasn't the only one. The Canadian government didn't clamp down on her “ and, in fact, she kept various Canadian papers, voted in elections, was a census-taker, worked for Elections Canada in elections, and even collected her pension.
But when she went to get a new passport last summer, the hammer dropped.
Barbara was told she wasn't a Canadian “ hadn't been for decades “ and was now a stateless person.
It wasn't just the federal government's initial intransigence that galled her. It was also the chuckles from people around her when she told them of her predicament.
It was not laughing matter to Barbara, and she rolled up her sleeves, talked to the news media, and did whatever it took to pressure the feds to fix the goofy situation.
To their credit, the federal government has fast-tracked many of the 'lost Canadians', and Barbara regained her citizenship last week.
But she isn't through. As you'll see from our story on Page 1 today, now Barbara is fighting for others who still face the loss of their precious citizenship.
She deserves our thanks for her diligence, and our encouragement to keep up the fight.
