Close X
Thursday, November 21, 2024
ADVT 
National

NDP slam Liberals for slow reunification programs for relatives stuck in Gaza, Sudan

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 23 May, 2024 10:07 AM
  • NDP slam Liberals for slow reunification programs for relatives stuck in Gaza, Sudan

The NDP has accused the government of bungling measures introduced months ago that were meant to bring relatives of Canadians from conflict zones in Sudan and the Gaza Strip to safety.

"Not one person has been able to get to safety through the government's special immigration measures," NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan told reporters Wednesday on Parliament Hill.

"This is perhaps one of the most urgent situations before us, that the government needs to take action on."

She spoke alongside three Canadians with relatives trapped abroad, who have spent thousands of dollars to help their family members survive.

They had each hoped to sponsor relatives through special emergency programs designed to bring their loved ones to safety, provided that they can support their family members when they arrive in Canada. 

The office of Immigration Minister Marc Miller did not have an immediate response to the criticism.

In Sudan, civil war broke out last spring, yet officials have said they don't expect relatives to reach Canada until the end of this year.

Einam Mohammadian, who has roots in Sudan, said it's been painful to see her relatives flee the conflict to Ethiopia, which has its own recurring ethnic violence.

Officials told her the delays stem from a lack of access to equipment needed for fingerprinting and other biometric requirements, she said. She questions why her family and others can't be transported to a place where the equipment is available. 

"This government left us behind. In 2019, the whole government stood up and said Black Lives Matter, but in this crisis we feel that black lives don't matter anymore," she said.

Safinaz El-Sohl broke into tears when recounting desperate calls from her relatives in Gaza; the lack of answers from Canadian officials leaves her with little to tell her family members.

"We've been treated as though this was never an emergency, and that our families do not matter and our emotions can be pushed aside," she said.

Some people have been able to leave the besieged territory by paying thousands of dollars to private firms in Egypt, but communication from Canadian officials left many with the impression that their loved ones would be disqualified from the program if they escaped the Gaza Strip too early in the application process, she said. 

Many later learned they could still be eligible for a Canadian visa program if they leave Gaza. 

Gaza's only civilian border crossing with Egypt has been closed since May 7, when Israel invaded the densely populated city and seized control of the crossing.

That means people who chose to not pay their way out beforehand are now trapped, El-Sohl said, all because they were trying to follow the rules.

"We're being left alone in the dark without any glimpses of hope," she said. "We deserve to be treated with the same respect and basic rights of all Canadians."

Another woman, Israa Alsaafin, said the government's approach to the crisis in Gaza smacks of racism. She's gone into debt to pay the $70,000 to get her relatives out of Gaza to Egypt.

Immigration officials told her in closed-door meetings that they're working to rectify the issues, and that it's complicated to get approval from Israel to allow people to leave.

Yet allied countries have evacuated some relatives, she noted. Australian media have reported that 330 Palestinians from Gaza arrived in that country by early February.

"I'm tired of hearing just promises, we need real action," Alsaafin said.

"We should stop the anti-Palestinian racism that's being done through this government, and nobody is caring about it."

Documents tabled in Parliament at the request of the NDP show that Ottawa had requested that Israel allow a total of 304 people in Gaza to leave the territory as part of the family reunification program. 

Canada has allowed some 4,467 Palestinians to apply for the program, though many have been unable to escape the Palestinian territory.

It's unknown if any have reached Canada. Kwan believes none have.

The Liberals haven't learned from the mistakes made during the emergency resettlement of Afghans, Kwan said, and bureaucratic hurdles are leaving people to die in conflict zones.

"They just lurch from crisis to crisis," she said. "The government has demonstrated that they are insincere, and they have learned nothing."

MORE National ARTICLES

Indian international students most likely to live in unsuitable housing, StatCan says

Indian international students most likely to live in unsuitable housing, StatCan says
The study, which was based on the most recent census data, says Indian students were more likely to live in unsuitable housing than students from other countries. In Brampton, Ont. and Surrey, B.C., the municipalities with the largest proportions of Indian students, more than 60 per cent of international students were living in unsuitable housing.

Indian international students most likely to live in unsuitable housing, StatCan says

Freeland says capital gains proposal will be tabled before summer break

Freeland says capital gains proposal will be tabled before summer break
The Liberal government will bring its proposal to increase the inclusion rate on capital gains to the House of Commons before the parliamentary summer break, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said Tuesday.

Freeland says capital gains proposal will be tabled before summer break

Cooler, wetter weather aids B.C. wildfire fight in northeast

Cooler, wetter weather aids B.C. wildfire fight in northeast
The BC Wildfire Service says cooler, wetter conditions are allowing crews to make progress in their firefight in the province's northeast where thousands of evacuees remain out of their homes for a second week. The service says the more seasonable weather is expected to persist until Wednesday.

Cooler, wetter weather aids B.C. wildfire fight in northeast

Killer Robert Pickton in life-threatening condition after Quebec prison attack

Killer Robert Pickton in life-threatening condition after Quebec prison attack
Correctional Service Canada has confirmed that B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton was the inmate injured in a "major assault" Sunday at a Quebec prison. Quebec provincial police said Tuesday that 74-year-old Picktonwas taken to hospital with injuries that were considered life-threatening.  

Killer Robert Pickton in life-threatening condition after Quebec prison attack

Surrey Board of Trade calls for review of sex offender regulations, protocols

Surrey Board of Trade calls for review of sex offender regulations, protocols
The Surrey Board of Trade says it is joining Mayor Brenda Locke in "urgently calling" for a comprehensive review of laws and protocols around high-risk sex offenders.  Board President Anita Huberman says in an open letter to B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth and Attorney General Niki Sharma that the board is concerned and frustrated about the recent release of a 29-year-old, who lives in Surrey and was convicted of sexually assaulting two women in 2017.

Surrey Board of Trade calls for review of sex offender regulations, protocols

B.C. mayor says drones endangering wildfire helicopter pilots, pleads for patience

B.C. mayor says drones endangering wildfire helicopter pilots, pleads for patience
The mayor of the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality in British Columbia says drones are endangering helicopters being used to fight wildfires near Fort Nelson, which was ordered evacuated earlier this month. 

B.C. mayor says drones endangering wildfire helicopter pilots, pleads for patience