I had a visit from Canada Revenue Agency for a tax audit 2004-02-25. The first thing the SR&ED Auditor said, after "How do you do?", was the following question.
"I am from Vietnam. Where are you from?"
I was stunned in disbelief to hear such a question that is totally irrelevant of SR&ED tax issues. Since the Auditor is clearly in the position of authority, it created an environment of intimidation. My thoughts were "If I said that I were from France or the U.S.A, which were at war in Vietnam, would my tax claim be denied?", "If I said that I were from Cambodia or China, which were in hostile situations with Vietnam in the past, would I lose my tax credit?", "If I were also from Vietnam, would I get a preferential tax treatment?", etc. Since I happen to belong to no national or ethnic group, should I be belittled after I told the truth that I am just a Canadian?
I felt insulted and humiliated throughout the audit session by the Auditor's offensive and confrontational attitude. The close-minded Auditor did not even listen to what I said, i.e., that I had submitted only a 1-page project summary at the insistence of the previous Scientific Advisor, that I followed the previous Financial Advisor's suggestion to keep a consolidated time sheet, and that all of my records are not on paper but on the computer. He unilaterally concluded that I did not keep adequate documentation, and that everything I said was only in my head!
In such an atmosphere of fear, there was no mutual respect, and effective communication was impossible. I plunged into deep depression after this shocking incident, and I am still suffering from daily nightmare even after 6 months since the incident. I had thought that every professional staff at Government of Canada undergoes sensitivity training in order to avoid the appearance of discrimination and harassment on the basis of national or ethic origin.
Please note that this extremely unpleasant experience is an isolated case, and all the other Advisors from Canada Revenue Agency treated me with respect and dignity in the past, while encouraging me to pursue innovations without prejudice.
