Stop the Deportation of Resister Kim Rivera on March 26, 2009.

I can't attend the meeting on the 25th but for what it's worth this is the letter I sent to Minister Kenney.  Honourable Jason KenneyMinister of Immigration:
minister@cic.gc.ca
613-954-1064                          I am writing to protest the removal of Iraq war resister Kim Rivera and her family - scheduled for next Thursday, March 26th.  The war in Iraq was and remains an illegal action and an inexcusable act of aggression.  Each soldier has the moral right and obligation to stand against such illegal actions on the part of their military commanders, fellow soldiers and above all their own governments.  A national government has no right, legally and morally, to send soldiers into violent conflict based on lies and deception and the former U.S. Bush Administration is certainly guilty of lies and the manufacturing of false evidence presented as the basis for the invasion. Subsequently the U.S. Administration proceeded with an equally false war on terror in order to breed a climate of fear to provide cover and consent to breaches of international law, the Geneva Conventions on the treatment of prisoners, and an appalling campaign to justify torture and human rights violations.  These actions have bred an intolerable level of instability in the Middle East and threatens to expand.        It is vital that Canada under your government reverse its complicity in these actions by standing up for international law and the right of all soldiers to resist illegal orders and acts of aggression. It is vital that Canada stand behind soldiers who have had the courage to express this resistance.  The world can no longer afford a system where soldiers use the excuse, "we were just following orders", and international law has taken steps to prevent this.  Now more than ever we need a world that no longer endorses governments that act out of pure aggression. Thank you Stephen LaFrenie
Actor/Arts Educator/
International Cooperation/CIDA portfolio
Green Party of Canada Shadow Cabinet

thank you. 

Update on Kim Rivera - her scheduled deportation is tomorrow.

Now they're coming for Kim Rivera and her family, the Conservative government dispatching the CBSA like Harper's personal henchmen to snatch another war resister living peacefully in Canada, emboldened by Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney's current opinion he's expressed to the media, stating that war resisters are "bogus refugee claimants." [6]

Kim Rivera was an Army Private from Texas where she grew up proud of the American way of life. It was her experiences in the Iraq theatre that began a radical change in consciousness, leading her to purposefully miss her unit's plane trip back to the Middle East. She is the first female Iraq war resister to seek refugee status in Canada in February 18, along with her husband and family. Having exhausted all appeals through the Federal Courts to halt her Immigrant and Refugee Board (IRB) ordered deportation, she must now leave Canada willingly by Thursday March 26, 2009, or be forcibly removed from the country. [7]

There is a pattern.

George Galloway's obstruction from entering Canada.

Removing U.S. war resisters from Canada.

Harper is trying to prevent any criticism of his war in Afghanistan.

With Obama's (possible) escalation of the Afghan war, there are going to be more U.S. war resisters seeking refuge in Canada. Unlike the current U.S. war resisters, these soldiers will be Afghan war veterans. There may be a federal election coming in the near future. Harper's headaches over the Afghan war are going to increase multifold. 

I just heard on Facebook that there has been a stay in Kim Rivera's deportation, but I don't know anything other than that.  Anyone have more news?  Statica??  Very exciting!

Any news?

Canadian Press/CTV report on the temporary stay granted to Rivera: http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20090326/resister_stay_090326/20090326?hub=Toronto

Notice the headline refers to her as "war resister", rather than the frequently used "deserter".

HAPPY UPDATE: Kim Rivera is safe for now; now off to the Federal Gov’t to make it permanent!
Here’s the story, morning glory!
http://www.rabble.ca/news/war-resisters-update-first-they-came [13]

Salut Everyone!
First off, a huge thank you for sticking with this campaign to keep resister Kim Rivera safe from deportation! We found out last night about the stay.

The stay is only temporary (a few weeks? but any more time Kim can spend with her children is awesome but we’d like Kim to stay permanently) and was granted by our Federal Court on cause that the previous Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) ruling didn’t take into account the fact that Kim could be more severely punished because she has spoken out against the war in Iraq.

TODAY, our Parliament/Federal Gov’t will debate the war resister motion. Olivia Chow will re-introduce the motion that allows any soldier of conscience permanent resident status in Canada for any war that is not UN sanctioned AND to stop all the deportation proceedings against Iraq war resisters already here. I say, re-introduce because this motion was already passed in Parliament on June3, 2008, but since it is non-binding, our Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, has chosen to ignore it. This was of, course, before our last Federal Election, We shall see what happens this time... The vote on the motion will most likely occur next Tuesday.

Check out more about the Parliament vote here: http://www.rabble.ca/news/historic-vote-parliament-war-resisters [14]

Also, when MP Olivia Chow (NDP) went to visit war resister ROBIN LONG in prison (deported from Canada and currently serving a 15 month prison term for deserting the US Army for reasons of conscience), she promised him she would read his powerful statement to our Parliament. It’s an awesome read: http://www.rabble.ca/news/war-resister-speaks-prison-let-gi-resisters-stay-canada [15]

More on the Federal Gov’t front, a Private Members Bill by Gerard Kennedy (Liberals) of the same nature is making it through our Parliament as well, working in tandem with the motion. More on that as it progresses.

So please, KEEP THE PRESSURE ON OUR POLITICIANS!!! There is no way I could possibly thank all of you enough right now, my heart sings. Please, invite people to the Facebook group and pass this news on to your friends. We can do this! Power to the Small Massive.

Keep the pressure up!
krystalline
(again, thank you a million times!)

Jason Kenney's personal email: kennej7@parl.gc.ca [16]

Kenney's Constituency Office (Calgary):
P: 403-225-3480
F: 403-225-3504

His Ottawa Office:
P: 613-992-2235
F: 613-992-1920

Citzenship and Immigration Ministry Office:
P: 613-954-1064

E-mail:
minister@cic.gc.ca [17]
kennej@parl.gc.ca [18]

Please carbon copy (cc) the Opposition party critics if you e-mail Jason Kenney:
Liberal Party immigration critic Maurizio Bevilacqua: bevilm@parl.gc.ca [19]
NDP immigration critic Olivia Chow: chowo@parl.gc.ca [20]
Bloc Québécois immigration critic Thierry St-Cyr: st-cyr.t@parl.gc.ca [21]

You can also call and e-mail our Prime Minister and call for Kenney to be replaced with a Minister that respects Canadian values:
The Right Hon. Stephen Harper
Phone: 613-992-4211
E-mail: pm@pm.gc.ca [22]

#30#

"... any war that is not U.N. sanctioned..."

What does that mean? Is it the same as "U.N. mandated"?

<>Both the Afghan and Iraq wars are U.N. mandated. The U.N. mandate for U.S. troops to remain in Iraq was to run out on December 31 2009 but was recently updated by the U.N. for another year.

<>Both wars are illegal, immoral and unjust.

<>I think Olivia Chow should drop the "U.N. mandated" clause as this will give the federal government grounds to bar/deport U.S. Afghan war resisiters (we will be seeing more of them in the future as Obama is ramping down the Iraq and ramping up the Afghan wars) and will encourage the government to deal harshly (ie., through Court Martials, jail sentences, dishonorable discharges, denial of future employment in federal jobs, character assassination, surveillance, harassment, etc.) with Canadian Afghan veterans who are or may become war resisters or public critics of the Afghan war.

Take it from me. I am (still technically) a Canadian Army (Reserve) Vet who has been publicly critical of the Afghan war.

I say this with great personal risk to myself, but I feel that strongly over the war  

War Resister Motion passes -- again -- in Parliament: 129 to 125. A very slim margin as there are more Conservatives members this time around.

Pro Iraq and Afghan war "torture lite" Iggy and his Liberals don't help either.

I don't understand this concept of a "non-binding motion". 

That's good news, so far. Statica has posted here on other war resisters who faced deportation as well: Chris Teske, Dean Walcott, Matt Lowell. Just wondering what became of their situations, and is there something about Kim Rivera's case that makes it more persuasive for our politicians?

Update on Kim Rivera:

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/07/ap_deserter_canada_070809/

Sorry about the <potentially> negative update on Kim Rivera.

Here is a positive update on Robin Long. ROBIN LONG IS FREE!

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/jul/10/bn10long123257/?milit...