we fled burundi when people wanted to kill us. i hope that in canada i'll be protected and then i'll live in freedom. >> you understand if you cross here it's illegal. you're going to be arrested. right? >> reporter: the asylum seekers push ahead anyway because they say they actually want to be arrested. most come from unstable countries in africa and the middle east, and they know that they can only claim asylum in canada after being taken into custody. crispin bayagwyze told us he made the decision to head to canada after spending almost a year out on the streets of new york city. >> i am burundian. with the unrest in our country, i have managed to make it to america. it's been 11 months and i've had no help at all. its difficult to eat and to find a place to sleep. i've filed papers with the immigration authorities and there was no follow-up. i realized that i would die on the street unless i find some other way. >> reporter: most get to the area by bus from new york city. then local taxis swoop in to drive the asylum seekers t

and originally burundi, but they had left to mozambique -- i'm sorry, burundi and tanzania briefly and then mozambique and then here. some of these kids had quite, quite a journey getting here. you know, all refugees to be designated refugee you have to be forced out of your original home to a different place. you can only apply for refugee status from the united nations if you've already been forced out of your own home. so they're applying from always a second country. but sometimes, like in the case of jacqueline and miriam, they had to flee from iraq, they got to syria but that wasn't safe, they went to turkey, they had a stop in egypt at one point. i mean, the journeys they had, they had been looking for a safe home for a decade before they reached this man's classroom. a decade of wandering. and that is, that is not untypical. that's a hallmark story. not everyone is chosen to resettle, and all these kids, one of the struggles they had too was, you know, all of them were very well aware that they'd left people behind. and it's a joy for them to be here and a sad isness that they'

language ] >> so unless i'm mistaken, the gentleman just said that cutting edge research moved to burundission all these years later, has been to preserve the patrimony that existed. all this was state-of-the-art back in '50s when the library was built. but for 20 years, there hasn't been electricity to run dehumidifiers to keep out the damp. through so many wars and through so many difficulties, he has maintained this fast to an extraordinary degree. why? [ speaking in foreign language ] >> staff still show up to work and organize. catalog and write requests for funding. perhaps the kinshasa or a central office where someone may or may not ever respond. he was here preindependence, yes? >> yes. >> does he remember the belgian rule? [ speaking in foreign language ] >> yeah, he remembers the period of colonialism. that was the best time they were living. >> what do you say to someone who suggests that belgian colonialism might have been the good times? the road home, such as it is. rotting bridges. makeshift ferries. it's an adventure. fortunately, ours was a good adventure. the congo is a

before going to oath opennia but for security reasons we weren't able to land in burundi. so we stopped in rwanda instead. rwanda didn't know we were going to be there. we didn't know we were going to be. it was just -- there was no warning whatsoever. but when we got there, as a coincidence, the next day they were having their 14th annual prayer breakfast. they assumed, since i was their speaker, at their first prayer breakfast 14 years before, i was there to give a speech. so i d i say this because 14 years before that happened and every year since then and every year since this took place, paul was then leading both prayer breakfast. so in addition to all of the virtues that paul that i have been talking about -- perhaps too long -- he is a strong man of faith and it doesn't get any better than that, mr. president. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. wyden: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 15 minutes. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. wyden: mr. president, very shortly the senate

to this date six countries are signatories ethiopia uganda rwanda tanzania kenya and burundi. egypt and sudan were absent having refused to even attend the meeting. there was a mood of celebration among those who signed the so-called mile quarter framework agreement and want to regulate ourselves. having come it's far. less than that to why it's even more often said to make sure that all. the signatories believe egypt and sudan will have to come on board at some point and sign a new agreement all the time they walk out but they still come back because there is no in the cells that they can be able to use and what we have been telling them the only simple way is probation with that at asians sure enough a few weeks later in june two thousand and ten the egyptians return to the negotiating table. it was a bitter pill for them to swallow. however they have yet to sign the entebbe agreement. for the egyptians at least for the time being facts on the ground are more important than the signing of any a cool must of. egypt and certain neutral parties believe that we don't need to sig