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Canada Orders US Woman War Resister (and new Mother) Deported

Thursday, January 15, 2009
Posted in Human Rights | Tagged Human Rights

The Canadian government has ordered the deportation of Kimberly Rivera, the first U.S. woman Iraq war veteran resister to go to Canada, and four other U.S. war resisters. Rivera, her husband and three children, including a newborn daughter only six weeks old, must depart Canada by January 27 or be deported. Rivera now lives in Toronto with her husband Mario, son Christian (6 years), daughter Rebecca (4 years), and newborn Canadian daughter Katie (6 weeks).

Rivera served in the U.S. Army in Iraq in 2006, but refused a second tour in Iraq in 2007 and instead took her family to Canada. Her first tour in Iraq convinced Rivera that the war was immoral and that she could not participate in it.

Rivera’s Pre-Removal Risk assessment application and request to stay in Canada on humanitarian and compassionate grounds were denied by the conservative Stephen Harper government, although the Canadian government refused to join the Bush coalition of the willing and join in on the war in Iraq. The Canadian military’s participation in the war in Afghanistan has been controversial as Canadian casualties rise.

The War Resisters Support Campaign in Canada believes the Canadian Immigration Minister’s decision to deport Rivera and four other U.S. war resisters is based on the need to have the deportations completed before the Canadian Parliament returns in late January.

The Parliament adopted a resolution in June, 2008 that recommended to the Harper government that “conscientious objectors” to wars that are not authorized by the United Nations be allowed to apply for permanent residence status in Canada.

Immigration Minister Jason has said that the refugee claims of war resisters are “bogus” and that he “has no sympathy for them.” Kenney has made it clear that his government intends to go against the will of Parliament and the will of Canadians.

If Rivera and the other U.S. war resisters are deported to the United States, or return voluntarily, they will face a military court-martial.

Robin Long, the only other U.S. soldier to be deported from Canada, was court-martialed in 2008 at Fort Carson, Colorado and received a 15 month prison sentence and a dishonorable discharge, the longest sentence given to a war resister during the Iraq war.

Other U.S. war resisters in Canada face deportation even earlier than Rivera. Chris Teske, has a deportation date of January 20, Patrick Hart, his wife Jill and their son on January 29 and Dean Walcott on January 30, 2009.

Several other war resisters in Canada are appealing negative decisions in Canadian Federal Court. The Court has stayed the removal orders of war resisters Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman and Matt Lowell. The Hart family faces deportation January 29th and will ask the Court for a similar stay.

Corey Glass has since been granted a new application to stay on Humanitarian & Compassionate grounds. Jeremy Hinzman’s appeal date for his negative decision has been set for February 10th 2009, and Matt Lowell is waiting to hear whether his appeal will be heard.

Please show your support for the war resisters and put pressure on the Canadian government to allow them to stay in Canada.

The War Resisters Support Campaign in Canada

(http://www.resisters.ca/index_en.html ) recommends the following urgent

actions:

1) Call or email Minister of Immigration and Citizenship Jason Kenney today and ask him to:

STOP deportation proceedings against U.S. Iraq war resisters; and IMPLEMENT the motion adopted by Canada’s Parliament to allow U.S. Iraq war resisters to apply for permanent resident status.

Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney Call 613.954.1064

MP Jason Kenney’s Parliamentary office:

613.992.2235

Or email him at:

minister@cic.gc.ca

or

Kenney.j@parl.gc.ca

Please cc the opposition party critics if you email Jason Kenney:

Liberal party immigration critic Borys Wrzesnewskyj:

wrzesnewskyj.b@parl.gc.ca

NDP immigration critic Olivia Chow: chow.o@parl.gc.ca Bloc Québécois immigration critic Thierry St-Cyr: st-cyr.t@parl.gc.ca

2) Email the Opposition Leaders and ask them to continue to speak out and work in support of war resisters.

The support of all three opposition parties has been critical in the campaign to let U.S. war resisters stay in Canada. Please email them and ask that they and their parties continue to be vocal and public on this issue at this critical juncture.

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff: Ignatieff.M@parl.gc.ca NDP Leader Jack Layton: Layton.J@parl.gc.ca Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe: Duceppe.G@parl.gc.ca

About the Author: : Ann Wright is a 29 year US Army/Army Reserves veteran who retired as a Colonel and a former US diplomat who resigned in March, 2003 in opposition to the war on Iraq. She served in Nicaragua, Grenada, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Sierra Leone, Micronesia and Mongolia. In December, 2001 she was on the small team that reopened the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. She is the co-author of the book “Dissent: Voices of Conscience.” (www.voicesofconscience.com)

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David Swanson is the author of the upcoming book “Daybreak: Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Forming a More Perfect Union” by Seven Stories Press and of the introduction to “The 35 Articles of Impeachment and the Case for Prosecuting George W. Bush” published by Feral House and available at Amazon.com. Swanson holds a master’s degree in philosophy from the University of Virginia. He has worked as a newspaper reporter and as a communications director, with jobs including press secretary for Dennis Kucinich’s 2004 presidential campaign, media coordinator for the International Labor Communications Association, and three years as communications coordinator for ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. Swanson is Co-Founder of AfterDowningStreet.org, creator of ConvictBushCheney.org and Washington Director of Democrats.com, a board member of Progressive Democrats of America, the Backbone Campaign, and Voters for Peace, a member of the legislative working group of United for Peace and Justice, and convener of the accountability and prosecution working group of United for Peace and Justice.