WHY ARE WE PROTESTING?

A recent wave of high-profile mass deportations in the Toronto Portuguese community, as well as reports of checks and raids that occurred at Dufferin Mall and in other public places targeting members of the Latin American, Portuguese, and Caribbean communities, indicate that American-style “immigration sweeps” have been taking place in the past two weeks in Toronto and may be of concern in other cities. Certainly, these events have been cause for outrage in immigrant and refugee communities across the country.

» click here to continue reading

MEDIA RELEASE April 6, 2006Stop the Deportations: Immigrant Groups Protest Mass Deportations of Non-Status PeopleImmigrants and supporters will protest at 12:30 pm Thursday April 6 at Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA), 333 Dunsmuir, to condemn the collective roundups and mass deportations of the Portuguese, Latin American, and Caribbean communities in Toronto in the past two weeks.

“The media reports said that no one is asking for a blanket amnesty,” said Alex Mah, an organizer with No One Is Illegal-Vancouver (NOII). “We want to be clear that we are in fact demanding regularization of all non-status people in Canada.”

» click here to continue reading

U.S. government to expedite removals near Canadian border. Devlin Barrett, Canadian Press

WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. government agents say they will speed up the removal of illegal immigrants caught near the border with Canada, extending a program already in effect along the Mexican border. The practice called “expedited removal” speeds up the pace of deportations and makes it less likely that illegal immigrants will slip into thecountry because immigrant detention centres lack bunk space. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff called the program part of a countrywide effort to “implement new tactics throughout the U.S. in order to gain control of our borders.”

» click here to continue reading

Family terrified as hundreds in GTA sent notices from feds. By TOM GODFREY, TORONTO SUN

Hundreds of failed refugees in the Toronto-area are being sought by immigration authorities who are making arrangements for their deportation during the holidays. The rejected refugees — many who have been here for up to five years — were mailed “call in notices” warning them to show up this month at the Greater Toronto Enforcement Centre on Airport Rd. “Your attendance is mandatory,” the letter states. “Failure to report to this office … may result in a Canada-wide warrant being issued for your arrest.” The letter tells the immigrants to bring their own interpreter, OHIP and social insurance cards, passports and other identity documents. “We are terrified,” said Liseta Rodrigues, 28, who with husband Marco, 23, and their sons, Marc, 10, and Daniel, 7, came to Canada in 2003 as refugees from the Azores, a territory of Portugal.

» click here to continue reading

Globe and Mail. Canada chided over rights, Ottawa criticized for attempting to deport people to countries where they risk torture

Ottawa — Canada ignores its international legal obligations when it maintains it has the right to deport people to countries where they risk torture, Amnesty International says in a report card to the United Nations. “International law is very clear . . . the international legal protection against torture, including removal to face torture, is absolute and applies in all circumstances, and Canadian law and practice must be reformed accordingly,” Amnesty says.

The Amnesty report, to be presented to the UN Human Rights Committee in Geneva next week, also takes the federal government to task for imprisoning four Muslim men without charges as alleged security risks and failing to implement a long promised independent appeal process for people making refugee claims.

» click here to continue reading