OTTAWA, November 12, 2003 -- The Honourable Denis Coderre, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, today announced three appointments to the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB). The appointments were made in accordance with the procedures of the Ministerial Advisory Committee established in March 1995.Marie-Andrée Lalonde previously served as a member of the IRB from 1990 to 1998. She was a counsellor in professional development with the IRB prior to accepting the two-year appointment announced today. She received her Bachelor of Arts from l'Université de Montréal and she studied sociology at Sir George Williams University.Raymond Way was appointed to a three-year term. Mr. Way has dedicated his professional career to education. He is presently an instructor with the University of Ottawa's Faculty of Education. Mr. Way is actively involved in his community, and served as an observer in Kosovo during the 2001 election. He attended the University of Ottawa and received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, a Bachelor's degree in Education and a Masters in Education.Paule Robitaille has over 15 years experience in journalism, having worked at La Presse Canadienne, La Presse, Le Devoir, L'Actualité, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. She has won several awards during her career as a broadcast and print journalist. Mrs. Robitaille received a BCL and LLB from McGill University, and was called to the Quebec Bar in 1987. Presently, she is attending the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her appointment is for three years.Created in 1989, the IRB is an independent administrative tribunal that reports to Parliament through the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. The Board has three divisions -- the Refugee Protection Division, the Immigration Appeal Division and the Immigration Division. The IRB hears refugee protection claims made in Canada, hears immigration appeals, and holds admissibility hearings and conducts detention reviews.
