Support the Riveras, stop the deportation of war resisters

The Harper government is trying to deport US Iraq War resister Kimberly Rivera and her family September 20, the start of a renewed campaign against war resisters that undermines international law and Canadian democracy. But there is a campaign to support the Riveras and stop the deportations.

With massive demonstrations against the looming Iraq War in 2003, the Canadian government refused to participate—and Prime Minister Harper  admitted the war was “absolutely an error.” Recently Archbishop Desmond Tutu called for Bush and Blair to be tried for war crimes for a war that "has destabilized and polarized the world to a greater extent than any other conflict in history."

Under international law soldiers have the right to refuse participation in illegal conflicts such as Iraq, and the Nuremburg principles call on soldiers to refuse participation in such wars. During the Vietnam War, Canada welcomed US war resisters—both volunteers and conscripts—and resisters from the Iraq War have been coming to Canada since 2004. US veteran Kimberly Rivera left the Iraq War after experiencing the terrifying impact of the war on children. She came to Canada in 2007—becoming the first female US Iraq War resister—and lives in Toronto with her husband Mario and four children (Christian, Rebecca, Katie and Gabriel).

US Iraq War resisters have the support of the majority of Canadians—including human rights groups, student and labour unions, community and faith groups, environmentalists, authors and artists. This mass support has been reflected in two Parliamentary motions calling on the government to stop the deportations and to let war resisters stay.

Minister of Censorship and Deportation

Despite international law, Canadian tradition and democracy, and Harper's own statements against the Iraq War, the Harper government has deported war resisters to US prison—including Robin Long (who was separated from his family) and Cliff Cornell, who both received harsh jail sentences for speaking out against the war. According to Cliff’s lawyer, “because he spoke out against the Iraq war, Cliff's sentence is harsher than the punishment given to 94 percent of deserters who are not penalized but administratively discharged.” Threatened with a similar fate of being separated from his family and jailed for following his conscience and international law, resister Rodney Watson has been living in sanctuary since 2009.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, an early supporter of the Iraq War, has gone out of his way to try to deport war resisters. When the Rivera family was threatened with deportation in 2009, Kenney called war resisters “bogus refugee claimants.” This was not about supporting other refugees, as Kenney's cruel cuts to refugee health have since made clear. As the Canadian Council for Refugees wrote in an open letter: “It is highly inappropriate for you to express your opinions on how you believe IRB (Immigration and Refugee Board) members should make refugee determinations. To do so gives the strong appearance of political interference. Public comments such as yours only make IRB members’ jobs more difficult and threaten claimants’ rights to an unbiased decision…The Canadian Council for Refugees supports all war resisters from any country who refuse to engage in armed conflict that is contrary to international humanitarian law.” 

Kenney dodged responsibility for his campaign against war resisters when questioned in public. Thankfully an emergency stay of removal was granted to the Riveras last time, and since 2008 there have been 10 federal court or federal court of appeal decisions in favour of war resisters.

Kenney has since amplified his intervention against war resisters by issuing Operational Bulletin 202, instructing immigration officials to flag US Iraq War resisters as “criminally inadmissible” (as opposed to criminal Conrad Black). In response, Amnesty International and Peter Showler (former Chair of Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board) called on Kenney to rescind Operational Bulletin 202 because it “misstates the law and seeks to intrude on the independence of both IRB members and Immigration Officers.” 

Now there is a renewed offensive against war resisters beginning with the Riveras, who—before even receiving the decision on their application to stay on humanitarian and compassionate grounds—were given a deportation date of September 20. 

Support the Riveras, stop the deportation of war resisters

Last night's community meeting in Parkdale, where the Riveras and other war resisters live, spilled out into the streets as people marched to show their support for war resisters. We have two weeks to amplify the campaign to stop the September 20 deportation of Kimberly Rivera and her family, and to reaffirm that she was right--and so were we--to say no to the Iraq War.

*Ask Immigration Minister Jason Kenney to stop the deportation: call 613-954-1064, email minister@cic.gc.ca or send this online letter.

*Contribute to the urgent appeal for funds.

*Friday September 14, 4:30-6pm will be a Canada-wide day of petitioning and leafletting. People in Toronto can meet at three locations: Carrot Common on Danforth ave, Trinity St. Paul Centre (427 Bloor St West, near Spadina), and Queen St. West and Dunn (Parkdale). Information from other cities will soon be available.

* Wednesday September 19, 4:30-6pm, there will be a peaceful demonstration outside the Federal Court Building at 180 Queen St. West, Toronto, to call on Kenney to stop the deportation of the Riveras.

*Follow the campaign for updates: www.resisters.ca

Photo essay: "Healthcare for refugee, stop the cuts now!"

From Inuvik to Vancouver to St. John's, people across Canada rallied today against a looming healthcare catastrophe: cruel and costly cuts to refugee health. In Toronto, more than 500 people took over both sides of the sidewalk outside the immigration office, spilling out into the street and getting solidarity honks from passing drivers.

The National Day of Action to Stop Cuts to Refugee Health Care, organized by Doctors for Refugee Care, mobilized the full range of health providers and other supporters of refugees and health care. There were rallies in more than a dozen cities, while the Opposition Immigration Critic Jinny Sims raised the issue in Parliament.

Since these cuts to the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) were announced by Immigration Minister Jason Kenney on April 25, there has been a groundswell of opposition. On May 11, physicians protested across the country, including occupying a Tory office in Toronto. The cuts are based on a number of bogus arguments (thoroughly debunked here)--that they will reduce costs, promote fairness, and protect public health. But the cuts will predictably produce the opposite outcomes, which is why they're being imposed.

On my way to the rally I met a refugee and mother of three who is scared of losing access to her life-saving dialysis treatment. Denying basic medical care to people who have fled war, torture, rape and persecution is both cruel, costly (forcing expensive ER visits with complications of untreated conditions) and dangerous. These cuts will kill.

If the Tories were so concerned about health equity, why not promote health for all? Instead, just a few months ago the Tories announced $21 billion cuts to health care--as part of a prescription for privatization. Austerity requires scapegoats, so the Tories are blaming refugees and the small IFHP program that covers their basic healthcare. As Dr. Mark Tyndall said at the Ottawa press conference today, "the government has used this issue to divide Canadians, pitting those who are dissatisfied with their own health coverage against refugees. Canadians are smarter than this. This is an attack on our entire healthcare system."

That hundreds of healthcare providers rallied on a monday afternoon shows how the government's attempts to whip up anti-immigrant hysteria is backfiring. The cuts are also exposing the government's other priorities--from prisons to fighter jets--which are consuming billions of dollars diverted from healthcare.

As many of the placards said at the Toronto rally, call or email Jason Kenney at 613-992-2235 or jason.kenney@parl.gc.ca--to demand healthcare for refugees, stop the cuts now!

Stop cuts to refugee health

Toronto doctors rally outside Joe Oliver's office

Today doctors across the country took action against proposed cuts to refugee health. There were occupations of Tory offices in Winnipeg and Toronto, a rally in Ottawa and press conferences in other cities.

On April 25, Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced drastic cuts to the Interim Federal Health Program. These cuts, which are scheduled to take effect on June 30, are cruel, costly and a threat to public health. According to the Canadian Council for Refugees (CCR), the cuts to the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) will have the following impact: 

1. create two-tier system of refugee care in Canada, discriminating between refugee claimants on the basis of their country of origin

2. deny necessary medical care on  arrival in Canada to resettled refugees or accepted refugee claimants with acute health needs

3. institutionalize gender discrimination

4. deny long-term, essential medical coverage to individuals who are living in Canada in limbo

5. offload costs to provinces

As CCR President Wanda Yamamoto summarized, “Thousands of people now receiving medication for everything from epilepsy and childhood respiratory illnesses to cancer and AIDS will no longer have access as of 30 June 2012. Will it take some deaths for the government to change its mind?”

Bogus arguments
The Tories justify the cuts by claiming that they will promote fairness, save money and protect public health. But these arguments are bogus. Denying basic and medically necessary health care for people who have been forced to leave their countries to escape war, rape, torture and persecution is not fair, it is inhumane. Furthermore, as the CCR points out “the government’s own figures show that the per capita cost for refugee claimants under the IFHP is only about 10% of the average per capita cost for Canadians.” Refugees are not a drain on the system, and depriving of them of basic health care needs will not save money. Instead, denying people cost-effective preventive care will force them to suffer complications of untreated conditions, which is costly and a threat to public health. As infectious disease specialist Dr. Mark Tyndall wrote,
"there is not a health economist in the world who would tell you that restricting primary and preventive care is a cost saver. In fact, waiting until people require urgent care before intervening is contrary to everything we know about sound health economics. Does Immigration Minister Jason Kenney really believe that we shouldn’t treat someone’s high blood pressure, diabetes, depression or arthritis or offer pre-natal care to expectant mothers?"

Austerity scapegoat

The real purpose of these cuts are to scapegoat refugees for the austerity agenda. Just a few months ago the Harper government announced $21 billion in cuts to Medicare, part of a prescription for privatization. To distract from that they are blaming the very modest $84 million IFHP. As Dr. Tyndall wrote, “It is reprehensible that Minister Kenney is pitting Canadians who are dissatisfied with their own medical coverage, against refugees, as depicted in a shameless petition posted on his official website.”

Cutting refugee health is the sharp end of the wedge to cutting public health care. According to Michael McBane from the Canadian Health Coalition, “The dismantling of one of the oldest parts of Canada’s public healthcare system –health care for displaced persons who arrived in Canada following W.W. II – is symptomatic of the Harper government’s approach to health care. ‘Cut and run’ is their motto and changing the hearts of Canadians from compassion to contempt is their goal.” This goal is also being pursued by criminalizing refugees with Bill C-4 and Bill C-31.

A broad coalition of groups--migrant justice groups, labour and student groups, health and health care provider groups--will be necessary to stop these harmful cuts to refugee health.