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TRANSCRIPT
CONSULATE GENERAL OF MEXICO-MONTHLY NEWSLETTER APRIL 2020
CONSUL ...TING
Consul..ting” is the monthly
publication of the Consulate General of
Mexico in Toronto
consulmex.sre.gob.mx/
toronto
11 King Street West, Suite 350 Toronto, ON
M5H 4C7 (416) 368-2875
General Informa-tion on Covid 19
Emergency servi-ces information
A message from the Consul General
The seasonal agri-cultural workers program PTAT
Air connectivity between Mexico city and Toronto
Repatriation of a group of Mexicans
Multicultural orga-nization “Canadá
nos une”
Mexican immi-grant makes reusa-
ble masks
Uni2.ca
Mexican journalists provide informa-
tion to the community
Toronto Catholic District school
board
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GENERAL INFORMATION ON COVID-19
Given the uncertainty on our daily lives due to the health emergency generated by COVID-19, I want to send to the Mexican communities who reside in Ontario a warm greeting and a message of encouragement to move forward, taking care, above all, of our health.
I invite you to take seriously and comply with all the sanitary and social distancing measures announced by the public health authorities, at the federal, provincial and city of Toronto le-vels.
Mexicans have always been supportive in diffi-cult times and this tough crisis will be no ex-ception. Let's face this situation together. Greetings and see you soon!
The epidemic caused by the coronavirus COVID– 19 has had a strong impact on everyone's daily life. In this context, the work of the Consulate General of Mexico in Toronto has been adapted to serve the Mexican communities in Ontario and Manitoba, both visitors and residents.
Since the beginning of March, the staff of the Consula-te General has focused primarily on this task. Meanwhile, and in accordance with government regu-lations, its offices remain closed for consular and immi-gration procedures.
A MESSAGE FROM THE CONSUL GENERAL OF MEXICO
If you live permanently or are temporarily in Canada and consider that your physical inte-grity is at risk, do not hesitate to call the emergency pone numbers of the Mexican consular network in this country. The Consulate General in Toronto has the emergency line +1 647-875-2236.
The government of Ontario extended until May 12 the emergency measures taken to ad-dress the health situation caused by the COVID-19 epidemic. For more information and up-dates: https://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2020/04/ontario-extends-declaration-of-emergency-to-continue-the-fight-against-covid-19.html
For Mexican citizens with symptoms that may correspond to COVID-19, the Government of Canada has created a self-assessmnt tool available online at: https://ca.thrive.health/covid19/en
EMERGENCY SERVICES INFORMATION
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THE SEASONAL AGRICULTURAL WORKERS PROGRAM
CONSUL...TING APRIL 2020
For any Mexicans currently in Ontario who for any reason would like to return home, Mexico City and Toronto are still connected by air with four regular flights per week.
Not only is the air route between Mexico City and Toronto still open, but additional flights have been added, inclu-ding charter services, to ensure that Mexican workers participating in the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Pro-gram can travel safely to Canadian farms.
For more information, contact: https://bit.ly/2KgmwlY or your preferred travel agency.
On April 22, the Consulate General in Toronto supported the successful repatriation of a group of ten young Mexi-cans who had been stranded in Turkey.
In collaboration with the Canadian government, the Me-xicans were flown from Istanbul to Pearson Internatio-nal Airport in Toronto, where they boarded a connecting flight to Mexico, in an operation coordinated with the Mexican embassies in Canada and Turkey and our con-sulate in Istanbul.
SAWP participants work about eight months a year on average, mainly in the areas of tilling, sowing, growing and harvesting of farm produce. The crops with the big-gest participation of Mexican workers are vegetables, legumes and fruits.
We would like to offer special recognition to our migrant workers in these difficult times for their continued con-tribution to the sustainability of Ontario’s food chains. The Mexican business community in Toronto has orga-nized to provide food to farms with migrant workers in the context of the health measures currently in effect in the province.
The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) in Ontario resumed on Thursday, April 9, with the arrival in Toronto of 212 Mexican migrant workers.
Subsequently, on April 21, Ontario welcomed 419 additio-nal Mexican workers, who will join another 1,266 to sup-port Canada’s food supply, under strict, mandatory health measures applicable to employers and workers.
Employers and workers must observe measures both in the workplace and in their accommodation, including periods of mandatory isolation and “physical distancing” measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
AIR CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN MEXICO CITY AND TORONTO
REPATRIATION OF A GROUP OF MEXICANS STRANDED IN TURKEY
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CONSUL...TING APRIL 2020
MEXICAN ORGANIZATIONS SUPPORT COMMUNITY
ORGANIZATION CANADÁ NOS UNE The Mexican Lourdes “Lumy” Fuentes is a community facilitator offering lea-dership, personal training, health and welfare workshops for Toronto Public Health and similar organizations. Lourdes is a founding member of Canadá Nos Une, a multicultural organization dedicated to promoting peace, caring for the monarch butterfly and advocating for the rights of the community.
In view of the current health crisis, she says “it is important to show what we Mexicans are made of, with solidarity and the big hearts we’re known for” and “to continue our work and somehow keep supporting the most vulnerable, in this case our seniors. We are living through an experience that we never could have imagined.”
Lourdes shared that “while in quarantine, my family and I decided to make protectors and face masks and donate them to sister organizations that also have groups of grandparents, so that they could feel safer and protected when they go to the doctor, go shopping or get social assistance at home. My sons, José Mauricio and Héctor Eduardo, are excited about what they have been able to learn and share.”
UNI2.CA
A group of Mexicans living in Toronto have organized to support community efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, declaring that “the current situa-tion around the world compels us to change our activities, perspectives and priorities. Everything we took for granted, now we value it more and more.”
Uni2.ca has been created as a non-profit volunteer organization that aims to support members of the Latino community affected by COVID-19, particu-larly people who don’t have official immigrant status in Canada. It does not pursue any political objective or financial profit.
The organization has noted that while many Mexicans are fortunately in si-tuations that will allow them to carry on during this emergency, not all have the same advantages, as there are Mexicans who do not have official immi-grant status that would give them access to the benefits provided by the Canadian government.
The group of volunteers involved in this project have come together with only one objective: to help make the world a better place for everyone. They are focused on providing help in the following four areas: a (dynamic) food bank; virtual medical care; emotional support; and legal assistance and re-patriation.
Contact: https://www.uni2.ca y [email protected]
The Mexican community in Toronto joined the numerous volunteers who have been making masks and other personal protection equipment to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The local press has highlighted Cecilia Flores, a Mexican immigrant living in Toronto, who decided to join Canada Sews, a group of 4,500 volunteers who have come together to make reusable masks and scrub caps for health wor-kers. In 11 days, the group participated in a cooperative network in Canada with more than 6,000 volunteers in five provinces to make 23,000 masks.
Article: Isabel Inclán (New Canadian Media) Photography Aarón Hernández
MEXICAN IMMIGRANT MAKE REUSABLE MASKS
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CONSUL...TING APRIL 2020
MEXICAN JOURNALISTS PROVIDE INFORMATION TO THE COMMUNITY
Via the digital platform The Bridge, the Mexican journalists Gabriel Ramí-rez and Cynthia Basulto provide the community in Canada with timely information in Spanish about the cu-rrent health emergency.
“In this situation, we need responsible journalism, in our language and based on facts. That is our contribution in this crisis,” explains Cynthia Basulto.
The reporters publish content that connects Spanish speakers with the current Canadian reality: “We provide information that benefits our commu-nity and gives them a sense of belon-ging in Canada,” stresses Gabriel, the project’s co-founder.
Visit: www.thebridgecanada.com
According to the Toronto Catholic District School Board, these are some of the main measures adopted to support the school community, and espe-cially the families most in need:
1.– The home student nutrition program (food for kids): to receive this sup-port, you need to contact your school principal directly.
2.-The services provided by district social workers are continuing during the pandemic.
3.-Interpretation services continue to operate to support parents and stu-dents who need them. Support can be requested via the community rela-tions department or through your principal or social worker.
4.- Support for mental health and wellbeing for families most in need through the department of special services.
Informes: Ericka Aguilera, Community Relations Officer [email protected] Teléfono: 416.951.6130
TORONTO CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD
USEFUL LINKS Media Directory of the Consulate General
Luis A. Castañeda Deputy Consul
Scarlett Navarro Press office
[email protected], (416) 368-2875 ext. 238
● Presidency of Mexico:
presidencia.gob.mx
● Ministry of Foreign Affairs: sre.gob.mx
● Mexican Embassy in Canada
embamex.sre.gob.mx/canada/
● Ministry of Culture:
cultura.gob.mx
Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Mexico: canchammx.com
● Mexico-Canada
http://mex can.sre.gob.mx/