From Taiwan’s shores to Canadian MP, in one generation

Chungsen Leung, National Post

In the lead-up to Citizenship Week 2011, Jason Kenney, Canada’s Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, asked four Canadian citizens born abroad to share their thoughts on what our country means to them. In today’s second instalment, Toronto-area MP Chungsen Leung tells his immigration story.

Thirty-five years ago, I became a Canadian Citizen and formally adopted Canada as my home, after having spent the previous eight years in the country as an international student and as a landed immigrant. Over time, I began working in public accounting, and then selling mass rapid transit systems and becoming a small business owner. Finally, I was elected as an MP to the House of Commons and appointed as the Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism in 2011. There are few countries in the world that provide such opportunities. I count myself very fortunate.

I was born in Taiwan. As many readers know, in the 1960s, Taiwan was becoming an "orphan state" – with many of the world’s nations having recognized the mainland People’s Republic of China instead. I was aware that I could soon become a stateless person should China decide to force unification with Taiwan. My uncle had already decided to complete his internship at the Halifax Infirmary after completing his medical degree in Taiwan. He would be my only relative outside of Taiwan.

I came to Canada to obtain an university education. Although I was accepted at a few universities in the United States and the United Kingdom, I chose to study in Canada instead. I met my wife in Canada during my graduate studies and our daughter was born and raised here.

Many immigrants who come to Canada do so because we may have lost our sense of belonging in our home country – in some cases due to natural or manmade disasters. Canadian citizenship means having a new sense of belonging. Our universal access to education provides us all with a shared set of common values.

Canadian citizenship means respect for many cultures. It means being open minded to a variety of ways of thinking and how we could integrate them into a unique Canadian culture. The historical experiences of our bilingual French-Canadian culture sets the foundation for a welcoming quality to all new Canadians.

In Canada, we believe that immigrants have a positive influence in our society. This simple yet powerful belief makes Canada stand out in the world. Newcomers are given a much higher importance in Canada than many other countries.

Citizenship also means respecting our environment. New Canadians place a high value on the natural beauty of our great nation. And we must work to protect and preserve it for all future generations of Canadians. We educate our children to understand the value and importance of our natural resources and maintaining our relationship to nature. These are the common shared values that we learned and cherish with our First Nations and Inuit people.

Canadian citizenship pro-vides an opportunity to participate in our society in many roles, including through the call to public service. It means that we as Canadians can give back to the country that we have adopted. Canada has one of the highest proportions of foreign-born legislators in the world. I am honoured to fulfil this role and represent the constituents of Willowdale.

(This article originally appeared in the National Post and on their website on October 18, 2011.)

Chungsen Leung is the Conservative Member of Parliament for the Toronto-area riding of Willowdale, and Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism.