| Honorary Canadian citizenship | |
|---|---|
Awarded by Parliament of Canada | |
| Type | Honorary citizenship |
| Established | 1985 |
| Country | Canada |
| Statistics | |
| First induction | 1985 |
| Total inductees | 7 |
Honorary Canadian citizenship (French:citoyenneté canadienne honoraire) is an honour bestowed on foreigners of exceptional merit following a joint resolution by both Houses of theParliament of Canada.
Honorary Canadian citizenship is purely symbolic; the recipient does not receive any of therights, privileges, or duties typically held by aCanadian citizen.[1]
| # | Name | Image | Award date | Country | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raoul Wallenberg |  | 1985 (posthumous) |  Sweden | Diplomat and humanitarian. Posthumous recipient of the U.S.Congressional Gold Medal, and secondhonorary citizen of the United States.[2][3] |
| 2 | Nelson Mandela | .jpg) | 2001 |  South Africa | Anti-apartheid activist, first post-apartheidPresident of South Africa, and recipient of the 1993Nobel Peace Prize.[4] |
| 3 | Tenzin Gyatso |  | 2006 |  India(born in  Tibet) | The 14thDalai Lama and recipient of the 1989Nobel Peace Prize.[5] |
| 4 | Aung San Suu Kyi |  | 2007 |  Myanmar | Opposition leader and recipient of the 1991Nobel Peace Prize.[6] Revoked by parliamentary vote in 2018 in response to theRohingya genocide.[7] |
| 5 | Karim Aga Khan IV |  | 2010 |  United Kingdom | 49th Imam of theShia Ismaili Muslims. HonoraryCompanion of the Order of Canada.[8][9] |
| 6 | Malala Yousafzai |  | 2014[10][a] |  Pakistan | Women's rights and education activist, and recipient of the 2014Nobel Peace Prize.[12] |
| 7 | Vladimir Kara-Murza | .jpg) | 2023 | United Kingdom (born in Russia) | Political activist, journalist, author, filmmaker.[13] |
Canadian civil society groups and other protestors called for the revocation of Aung San Suu Kyi's honorary citizenship in response to UN allegations that the2017 persecution by the Burmese military against theRohingya, an ethno-religious minority group in Burma, was a form ofethnic cleansing.[14][15] This included an onlineChange.org petition addressed to Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau and theHouse of Commons of Canada.[16] The House of Commons voted unanimously on September 27, 2018, to revoke her honorary citizenship.[17] TheSenate of Canada approved a motion to the same effect unanimously on October 2, 2018.[7] With revocation motions passed by both houses, theGovernment of Canada stated that it recognized Parliament's decision to revoke the honour.[7]
