International Delegations Demand an
End to the Deportations of Palestinian Refugees from Canada
Delegations in eight cities across Canada and the world visit Canadian
officials to support the Palestinian struggle for self-determination in
Canada.
On August 15th, members and supporters of the Coalition Against the
Deportation of Palestinian Refugees visited Canadian Immigration
offices,
Consulates and Embassies in Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, New York, London,
Beirut, Amman and the United Arab Emirates, to demand an immediate end
of
deportations for all Palestinians in Canada and for them to be granted
permanent resident status.
Joe Volpe, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, continues to
ignore the Coalition's demands. He and members of his ministry have
refused to meet with Coalition members and ignored the support they have
from civil society and individuals across Canada and the world. After
over two years of organizing and fighting against their deportations,
Palestinian refugees and their supporters took the initiative on August
15th to remind Volpe of their demands, and their will to continue
fighting.
OTTAWA: Supporters visited the office of the Minister of Citizenship
and
Immigration Canada and demanded a meeting to highlight the Coalition's
demands and to specifically discuss the struggle of two Palestinian
refugees recently released from the Ottawa detention center, but still
facing deportation. After being denied entry, and insisting to meet for
almost one hour, the delegation met with CIC staff and delivered the
group's demands. The police arrived, and the delegation learned that
they
had been summoned due to a rumor that busloads of supporters were on
their way from Montreal.
TORONTO: The Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees
paid the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada a visit in his
home riding of North York, in an attempt to force him to face those he
intends to deport in the coming days and months. The Minister was
conspicuously absent from his riding office the morning of August 15th,
after having refused to acknowledge repeated requests from the Coalition
to sit down and discuss the situation. The Coalition, refusing to be
ignored, remained in the office to highlight the injustices of the
immigration system, and their effects on the lives of the Palestinian
refugees. Their demands were delivered to members of the Minister's
staff.
MONTREAL: The Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees
and their allies held a press point in front of the local Citizenship
and
Immigration Canada office, where the files of many of the Palestinian
refugees fighting against deportation are being held and where the
decisions affecting their lives and livelihoods will be made. Although
they were promptly locked out of the building and denied their request
to
enter to meet with the Director of Inland Processing-the person
ultimately
responsible for the final decision on their right to remain in Canada.
Supporters refused to leave until they were granted a meeting with
someone
responsible for the processing of their files. Ultimately, after CIC
employees summoned the Montreal municipal police to the scene, the
delegation met with Phillipe Albert, Director of Finance and
Administration, who has promised to place the demands and supporting
documentation provided by the Coalition directly in the hands of the
Regional Director of CIC in Montreal. Members of the delegation also
spoke
to the interim director of Inland Processing and relayed the Coalition's
demands to her.
NEW YORK: Coalition members and supporters visited the Canadian
Consulate
in NYC and met with Pamela Wallin, Consul General. Members discussed the
conditions of Palestinian Refugees in the West Bank, Lebanon and Syria -
including those who had won refugee status for themselves in the U.S.
Although Wallin expressed that 'with so many refugee applicants she was
in
no position to express favour to Palestinians specifically,' her special
envoy spoke with the delegation for nearly an hour. Wallin and the
envoy
listened to testimonies of two refugees - one who had been refused in
Canada in 1998 but was granted status in the US. The Coalition's
demands
were delivered to the Consul.
LONDON: A delegation of supporters met with two officials from the
Canadian High Commission to the United Kingdom: Gordon Morrison, the
political counselor at the Canadian High Commission of Canada in the UK,
and Mr. Christopher Berzins, political officer at the Canadian High
Commission. The delegation explained the international scope of the
delegations and the officials were told that this coordinated effort is
reflective of the wide support of civil society organizations in Canada
and abroad.
A letter addressed to Mr. Mel Cappe, the High Commissioner, along with
supporting documentation, was presented to Mr. Morrison and Mr. Berzins.
During the meeting, which lasted over 45 minutes, members of the
delegation informed the officials of the plight of the Palestinian
refugees in the camps of Lebanon and Occupied Palestine. The delegation
briefed the officials on the Palestinian refugees who struggled in order
to reach Canada to claim asylum. The cases of Palestinian refugees
already deported and detained in the United States were highlighted.
The delegation also informed the officials that the Coalition is part of
a
larger campaign that demands the implementation of a full regularization
program for all non-status people in Canada
The delegation urged the officials to take a position in support of the
demands of the Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees
and to communicate that position to Ottawa. Mr Morrison and Mr. Berzins
informed the delegation that they had an obligation to do so.
BEIRUT: An organizer from the Coalition met with Claudie Senay, the
Political Consular at the Canadian Consulate in Lebanon. He explained
the
work of the Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees in
Montreal and the ongoing crisis of deportations.
Claudie Senay agreed to the send a fax to officials at Immigration
Canada
and Foreign Affairs in Ottawa, while she also circulated the letter from
the Coalition to the Consul among all staff members at the Consulate.
Senay was pressed to provide political support for the Coalition,
particularly by highlighting the situation for Palestinian refugees in
Lebanon.
*****
The Coalition members and supports who joined these delegations got
markedly different reactions, depending on whether they were visiting
foreign diplomatic and consular offices or visiting CIC offices in
Canada.
The foreign offices, whose role includes catering to the interests and
needs of Canadians abroad, were receptive and open to discussion, while
those officials in Canada directly responsible for the current situation
of the Palestinian refugees refused to so much as meet with the
delegations. This response was but one example of the callousness of the
immigration bureaucracy that remains willing to destroy the lives of
those
whose dignity it refuses to acknowledge.
The Coalition continues to demand an immediate end to the deportation of
Palestinian refugees and for the regularization of their status in
Canada.
We welcome your support.
(514) 859-9070
refugees@riseup.net
http://refugees.resist.ca
Financial contributions are desperately needed for the Coalition to
continue its struggle. Please send a check addressed to <<Medical Aid
for
Palestine>>, with the Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian
Refugees in the memo, to:
Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees
C/O QPIRG McGill
3647 University, 3rd Floor
Montreal, H3A 2B3
Tax receipts will be issued upon request. |
View Pictures of the
delegation visit to immigration Canada in Montreal |