Haitian refugee becomes official face of Canada

Reuters:

Canada bolstered its reputation as a country of immigrants on Thursday when a Haitian-born refugee was named as the personal representative of head of state Queen Elizabeth.

Former television journalist Michaelle Jean is the first black person ever to be nominated to the post of governor general and only the third woman.

"Her personal story is nothing short of extraordinary ... she has known what it is to come to a new country with little more than hope -- hope and a belief that with hard work a new country can bring new opportunity," said Prime Minister Paul Martin.

Jean, 48, was born in Haiti but fled with her parents to Canada's French-speaking province of Quebec in 1968. She joined public broadcaster CBC in 1988 and made her name with a series of documentaries focusing on people at the margins of society.

"I have come a long way. My ancestors were slaves. I was born in Haiti, the poorest country in our hemisphere. I am a daughter of exiles driven from their native land by a dictatorial regime," she told reporters.

Jean said she was proud to be part of Canada "with its immense and unlimited possibilities, rich with the daily contributions of people who have come from all over the world."

Canada, which has a population of 32 million, aims to attract between 220,000 to 245,000 immigrants a year and is moving away from its roots as a country made up of French and British settlers as well as aboriginals.

Statistics Canada said in March that its projections showed that Canada's population of visible minorities could more than double between 2001 and 2017, rising from 4 million to up to 8.5 million.

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