Canadian immigration officials told to flag U.S. war resisters

[CHIMO]

Source: Torstar

Canadian immigration officials have been told to flag American war resisters who seek asylum or apply for permanent residence for further scrutiny.

In its new operational guide, Citizenship and Immigration Canada said these individuals could be criminally inadmissible because “desertion is an offence in Canada” under the National Defence Act, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Critics say the directive’s timing was suspicious, given a July 6 Federal Court of Appeal decision in favour of American soldier Jeremy Hinzman, whose family had been rejected permanent residence under humanitarian and compassionate grounds. The court ordered a reconsideration of Hinzman’s application.

Hinzman, an army paratrooper, fled to Canada in 2004 because he was morally opposed to the Iraq invasion and was the first to apply for refugee status, which was ultimately refused. About 50 U.S. war resisters have since applied for permanent residence in Canada, either under spousal sponsorships or on humanitarian grounds.



Read more: http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/843379--canadian-immigration-officials-told-to-flag-u-s-war-resisters?bn=1

[PDJane]

1. And this directive comes

In spite of the fact that the population and the parliament are overwhelmingly in favour of giving Americans asylum.

It's beyond time to remove Harper from power.

[Canuckistanian]

2. Fuck Harper

Canadians have NO beef with American war resistors.

We've welcomed them with open arms ever since Vietnam.

And besides... they didn't desert from OUR army.

[Peace Patriot]

3. Shame on our government for trying to force people to kill in an unjust war!

It causes me deep dismay to see our government harassing and persecuting people who decided not to kill in an unjust cause--young people with a conscience, courageous, ethical youngsters who realize that they were lied to--wonderful young people like Jeremy Hinzman, who have to flee our country because of criminals like Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld. The criminals live in luxury, retaining their titles and their pensions, and their ill-gotten wealth, fawned over by the media, with the Secret Service to wait on them and keep them from harm--honored guests at fat cat, war profiteer banquets, for having ripped the bodies of children and other innocents to shreds, on a massive scale; for having tortured thousands of helpless prisoners; for having wreaked havoc on entire countries; for having broken many laws--master criminals who are too powerful to prosecute or even to investigate--while the best among our young people, the ones who figured out the truth, and acted on the truth, are hunted and threatened, deprived of their citizenship, their homes, their families, having to live from day to day, not knowing what will happen to them, with our great war machine seeking vengeance upon them.

It is so awful to see the Obama administration--elected with an anti-war mandate--pursuing this Bush Junta policy of punishing those who objected to one of the worst crimes that our country has ever committed.

Kudos and laurel wreaths to Jeremy Hinzman and the Fifty--and to all those who have had the courage to say no to this abomination!

[saigon68]

4. More good vibes from the Present Occupant

I for one am waiting for the pending repuke revival

So many people I know are furious with the DLC and their lackies like butt boy Rahm