TORONTO — Hla Wynn, a retired college professor, has been forced to cancel his anticipated trip to New York this summer. He was looking forward to spending time with family and assisting his brother in recovering from surgery. However, a recent travel ban announced by U.S. President Donald Trump has put his plans on hold indefinitely.

The travel ban affects residents from 12 countries, including Wynn's birthplace, Myanmar. “We’ve been going back and forth, some years they come and visit us, sometimes we go and visit them, to go for a trip during the summertime, spend about a week or two with them,” the 73-year-old said. “... but because of this new development, I’m not comfortable visiting them.”

The ban, which is set to take effect on Monday, includes citizens from Afghanistan, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. Additionally, seven other countries, including Burundi, Cuba, and Venezuela, face heightened travel restrictions. Some of these countries were previously targeted by similar measures during Trump’s first term.

Wynn, who now resides in Toronto, has maintained close ties with Myanmar and is concerned about the broader implications of the travel ban. He has been helping university students in Myanmar online after they lost access to education following a military coup in 2021. He fears the ban will hinder those students from pursuing their studies. “Everything was closed down or even if they are open, they are under military government, which is a very poor education system,” he said. “I was so sad for these people because lots of people are trying to get into (the) U.S. and Canada … and now there are lots of students stuck to get a visa.”

Napas Thein, president of the Burma Canadian Association of Ontario, described the travel ban as “cruel” to the people of Myanmar. He noted that the citizens are already facing significant challenges due to the coup and a new law mandating military service. Thein expressed concern that the ban will make it more difficult for individuals to escape to safer locations. “This has really put a strain on people that I know in Canada,” he said. “I know a student, supposed to be incoming PhD student, who is supposed to go to a university in the United States, whose trajectory there may be completely halted because he’s a Myanmar national.”

Thein and other members of the Myanmar diaspora in Canada feel uneasy about crossing the Canada-U.S. border. Some have already begun canceling plans to attend conferences or visit family. “We really don’t know, and even though, technically, people who are born (in Myanmar) but are Canadian citizens should be able to go, we’re really not sure,” he said.

The travel ban was announced just days after Canada introduced new border security measures that could limit asylum claims. Critics argue that the proposed legislation threatens civil liberties within the immigration and asylum system. The Canadian government claims the 127-page bill aims to secure borders, combat organized crime, and address issues like fentanyl trafficking and money laundering. One proposed change would prevent individuals from making asylum claims if they have been in Canada for more than a year, retroactive to June 3, if the bill becomes law.

“It just felt like kind of a double whammy for my friends who are in Canada, who aren’t Canadian citizens but are from Myanmar, because they’ve already been through over four years of personal struggle,” Thein said. “Restricting the people who have studied here already from accessing the (Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada) or asylum, it could be really drastic for these people.”

Dawit Demoz, vice-president of the Eritrean Canadian Community Centre in Toronto, expressed deep concern about the implications of the U.S. travel ban for the Eritrean community. Many families remain separated due to ongoing political and humanitarian crises in Eritrea, and the new ban complicates their efforts to reunite. “(The ban) creates additional fear and uncertainty for those seeking safety and connection across borders,” he said. “For our community, policies like this do not just impact travel but they deepen isolation, delay reunification and compound the emotional toll experienced by displaced individuals.”