fizban said:
Congrats Maria on your COPR. Although I do think the reporter could have done a better job on the article. Didn't even mention how 2015 people are already getting their COPRs while us 2014 people are still stuck in limbo!
Thank you!
I agree that I think the article should have covered more especially considering we had almost a 2 hour interview with him. I sent tons of documentation etc.. I was upset they didn't include that my FBI clearance and Marriage certificate were also lost. Especially because there was proof that they admitted they had misplaced those.
Either way, when I brought all those points up to the writer he said that the editors have the final say on what they want the writers to concentrate the story on. The editors wanted to make the main point of the story the 532 pages of proof that were misplaced to go with the previous report of error rates. So that is what was done.
I am happy at least it is out there. I wish more people could get their horror stories printed.
I was annoyed that they wrote we were approved in 8 months (half the processing time). It made readers think that we had preferential treatment or that we had it easy. They should have elaborated how the 16 month number is reached and how USA citizen straightforward apps do not take the full 16 months. Either way I knew that I was risking the story not being told 100% by going to the media but I still felt I had to do everything in my power to get heard. I like to think that us going to the media helped us get DM when we did. Our application received DM 1 day after the media contacted CIC for information on our file. Could it be a coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not.
My husband's MP had been waiting 4 weeks to hear back from CIC as soon as the media inquired they heard back that same day and contacted us.
I also think that maybe they didn't write about the 2015 applicants getting DM before the 2014 applicants because it was just my word on it. The Toronto Star likes to vet the information they publish thoroughly. I had to send them tons of proof of everything before they even considered writing our story. The only reason they even considered doing a solo piece on us was because they were impressed by my organization and how well I had documented everything with pictures and paper records. I had plenty of proof that they had received everything and lost it.
They of course claimed they had not received my relationship proof but they looked like idiots because it was with the application they claimed to have received. So how can you get one part of the box but not the other? ... They asked for the tracking number (cic asked) and we forwarded it to them, after that they said they would make sure I was not penalized if they did in fact make a mistake. They of course would not say they did make a mistake but that very next day I got DM. Its just weird how it all went down.
Sadly, even though I am super happy with DM right now that still does not erase the 7 weeks of hell I went through. I sent Ottawa 3 packages by Canada Post and 10 emails back and forth trying to fix this problem. Not to mention the extra money we had to spend to get all this stuff reprinted, shipped, to get new prints for the FBI, to get a new FBI check (which btw is still pending since they accepted the copy). I don't wish what I went through on anyone. I really did not stress about the wait until they lost my papers. After that I was just a mess, every email I got form Ottawa was just more requests and more bad news.
... I would have never gone back to check.. now I am looking forward to it! 
