Lily PolenchukAt the International Students’ Association (ISA) forum, the vice-president (external) (VPX) candidates tackled issues faced by University of Alberta’s international students. A prominent concern was the recent federal announcement that study permits in Canada will be slashed by 35 per cent in the upcoming school year. Unlike the first two forums, the candidates offered responses that differed substantially, but both presented some questionable statements.
Taking aim at the issue of affordability for international students, Logan West shared her experience as an international student in California. She explained that she too relied on the food bank and experienced housing insecurity, and pledged to fight for international students “at all levels of government.”
I was pleased that West’s passion hadn’t waned between forums. The fact that she has first-hand experience as an international student abroad, combined with her experience working alongside U of A International, provided her a level of credibility that she had lacked up to this point.
Abdul Abbasi related his experience emigrating from Pakistan, and how difficult it can be coming from a culture “that’s totally different.” Although he’s technically not an international student, he knows what it’s like to adapt to an unfamiliar environment. This will give him better insight when advocating for students just acclimating to life in Canada.
Abbasi gave arguably the best insight at the entire forum — that mental health is still a heavily stigmatized topic in international households. He explained that he wants to acquire culturally sensitive therapy for international students, rather than advisors taking things “from a western point of view.” This is a fantastic idea, and Abbasi’s perspective on this made him feel more relatable than the first two forums. I’d like him to explain exactly where he intends to source professionals for this, though.
While each candidate got off to a great start during the forum, their responses to questions from the ISA fell flat. When asked how he intends to advocate for the ISA, Abbasi touched on working with the university and Students’ Union (SU) executives to ensure the voice of the ISA is heard. But, his answer was very brief and unsubstantial.
This was West’s moment to seize control of the forum. Instead, she just repeated the same rhetoric about “fighting” for students that she’s been saying throughout the campaign. She simply offered scathing remarks to the university and provincial government for raising international students’ tuition. West repeated during the forum her intention to consult closely with the ISA, but it’s still not clear what exactly she plans to do with the information she gathers.
When asked about the upcoming study permit caps, Abbasi didn’t seem worried. He stated that Alberta’s permit count will “increase by 7,300,” citing a recent Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship town hall. West referred to the same projection later on as well. Abbasi did make some mixups, like saying that 68 per cent of Campus Food Bank (CFB) clients are international students, when the actual figure is 70.3 per cent. This doesn’t invalidate what he’s saying, but it’s a bit confusing, given how well-researched most of his other statements have been.
Later in the forum, Abbasi identified the fact that many international students have to work jobs to make end’s meet. He emphasized the importance of guaranteeing that they won’t have to work “under the table.” He wants to take feedback from international students to the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA), to give them more leverage with the government. He has a similar plan for French students already, and I’d be more impressed if he had taken the chance to paint a better picture of what exactly this collaborative effort would look like.
Meanwhile, West said that she wants to remove the 20 hour per week work limit. But aside from that she gave an even shorter version of Abbasi’s response, stating that she means to “go through CASA” to make it happen. I’m glad that she took the chance to be more specific, but it’s hard to make a convincing case when you’re just giving a simpler version of your opponent’s argument.
As before, Abbasi has obviously done his homework, while West’s arguments remain underdeveloped. She relates well to students, but her arguments need more context to have impact. Throughout the forums, West has generated some terrific quotes encompassing student issues, but out of context, she sounds more like a vice-president (student life) candidate than VPX. I don’t think West is out of the race just yet, but she clearly has ground to cover if she wants the position.
