August 3, 2011 By Kristen Shane, Embassy Magazine

Government ministers are conflating immigration and criminal law in their quest to find and deport 30 men allegedly involved or complicit in war crimes or crimes against humanity, say international criminal justice lawyers and other observers. That’s dangerous, they say, because the ministers are effectively labelling people as war criminals who have never been found guilty of such crimes by a criminal court. Meanwhile, one ambassador says he was surprised to learn Canadian authorities were seeking one of his countrymen over such allegations. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney and Public Safety Minister Vic Toews announced July 21 that the Canada Border Services Agency was releasing the names, photos and other identifying information of 30 men wanted for deportation from Canada.

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Published On Tue Aug 02 2011, Toronto Star

Five down; 25 to go. The Conservative government’s latest crackdown is off to a speedy start. Since Public Safety Minister Vic Toews enlisted the help of the public to root out 30 suspected war criminals hiding in Canada, tips have been pouring in. In just two weeks, fugitives from Pakistan, Honduras, Congo and two from Peru have been arrested. One was spotted shopping for bathroom tiles in Mississauga. Another was turned in by members of his ethnic community in Montreal. This past Sunday, the first captive was deported. Toews is basking in the success of his “pilot project.” His cabinet colleague, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, whose department lost track of the men in the first place, is cheering him on lustily. The Prime Minister’s Office is “tweeting” news of the captures. There is already talk of expanding the program.

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By LOUISA TAYLOR, The Ottawa Citizen August 2, 2011

OTTAWA — Here is what we know about Mathurin Prince. Born in Haiti, he’s 50 and once lived in Gloucester. The Canadian government says he applied for refugee status, but was found to have violated “human or international rights” and is inadmissible to Canada. He vanished sometime after being scheduled for deportation. Last week Prince and 29 other men found inadmissible to Canada for the same reasons have been named in Canada’s first list of people “most wanted” for deportation.

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2 August 2011- Amnesty International Canada has written to Ministers Toews and Kenney in an open letter about thirty individuals accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity believed to be residing in Canada who are “Wanted by the CBSA”. Amnesty International is concerned that the initiative does not conform to Canada’s obligations with respect to human rights and international justice. Amnesty International strongly supports efforts to bring them to justice through criminal law rather than immigration enforcement measures. They should be extradited to face justice not deported. If they are just deported they may not face any further investigation or criminal charges. And they cannot be deported under Canada’s international human rights obligations if they face the possibility of serious human rights violations. In those cases, when they cannot be returned, under the principle of universal jurisdiction for these serious crimes they should be brought to justice in Canada.

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By RICK GOLDMAN, The Gazette July 28, 2011

Salma (not her real name) has trouble talking about her past without breaking down. While still a student in her civil-war-torn homeland, she was recruited into the student arm of the opposition movement. She helped run meetings, sometimes serving coffee and taking minutes, and was involved in organizing peaceful demonstrations. Years later, after peace accords were signed and the movement became a legal political party, she again volunteered during an election campaign. Salma says she inadvertently came across evidence of illegal activities and was then targeted by party officials, who first threatened and then brutally assaulted her. She fled to Canada to seek asylum. But Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board found that her involvement in the movement, which had a guerrilla arm that had targeted some civilians during the civil war, excluded her from being considered for refugee protection in Canada. Even though a Canadian government official confirmed that Salma was never involved in any act of violence and posed no danger to Canada, she was deemed to be “complicit in crimes against humanity.”

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