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Citizenship and Immigration

Iraq war resister Rodney Watson still awaits fate in Canada

October 6, 2011
The Georgia Straight
Iraq war resister Rodney Watson still awaits fate in CanadaRodney Watson recently marked the second anniversary of his move to a one-bedroom apartment in the First United Church on East Hastings Street. As a former U.S. soldier and a conscientious objector to the war in Iraq, Watson took sanctuary in the building after Canadian immigration authorities ordered that he be deported in September 2009. Since then, he has made a life in the Downtown Eastside church with his wife, Natasha, and their two-year-old son, Jordan, as he awaits word on his application to stay in Canada on humanitarian and compassionate grounds...Libby Davies, the NDP MP for Vancouver East, noted the previous Parliament passed two motions in favour of stopping the deportation of war resisters. “The expression of parliamentarians by majority in the last Parliament was very strong in favour of welcoming war resisters as we had during the Vietnam era, but we have a Conservative government that is blinded by politics on this,” Davies said in a phone interview with the Straight.
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Immigration levels holding steady: Kenney

February 18, 2011
CBC News
Immigration levels holding steady: KenneyOTTAWA - Canada's overall immigration levels aren't changing, Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney says...Overall, our target is consistent," Kenney told a House of Commons committee...Numbers released to CBC News, however, show a 20 per cent cut in the skilled worker category and 25 per cent cut for parents and grandparents who want to be reunited with children in Canada. NDP MP Libby Davies says the new target for parents and grandparents means some families will have to wait as long as 13 years for the government to decide whether their loved ones can come to Canada. "Now, that's clearly unacceptable in terms of wait times," Davies told Kenney in the committee meeting. "Your government has said repeatedly that the backlog is going to be cleaned up, that we won't have these incredible wait times. And yet … we're faced with dramatically different information."
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Libby speaking up for a fair immigration and refugee system

April 28, 2010 Speeches in Parliament

House of Commons
HANSARD Debates

Bill C-11, An Act to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Federal Courts Act

Ms. Libby Davies (Vancouver East, NDP):
Madam Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to rise in the House today to speak to Bill C-11.

I will focus my comments on the system overall. For many Canadians, and certainly internationally, Canada has a reputation as being a place that is welcoming and open not only to immigrants but to refugees. The NDP believes the cornerstone of any refugee determination system is that the process has to be fast and fair.

In some ways the proof of the system is in the individual cases. While we cannot go into individual cases here, as MPs, we are very familiar with the process as it relates to individuals cases in our constituency offices. I know, over my 13 years in this place, sometimes there is a sense of heartbreak of what people go through in terms of the refugee system, the appeal process, the wait times and the amount of stress and anxiety.

It is really important that we devise a system that is fair to people, a system that is not open to abuse but is fair and fast. This is a primary consideration. As one my colleagues said earlier, we want to ensure that each case is dealt with on its merits. It is very easy to make generalizations.

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Libby speaking out on GLBTT rights and Canada's new immigration guide

November 16, 2009
Xtra
New immigrants guide glosses over gaysA recently released guidebook for new immigrants, Discover Canada, is a mixed bag of trivia and ideology. The handbook has an explicit section on gender equality, where it condemns the "barbaric cultural practices" of spousal abuse, honour killings and female genital mutilation. There is a section on diversity that gives a shout out to atheism but leaves out gays or lesbians. Queer people are relegated to a sidebar next to a photo of Mark Tewksbury, in the section devoted to sports, arts and culture. And that has MPs shaking their heads. "I always worried that it was more of a political, ideological message more than anything else," says lesbian NDP MP Libby Davies of the guide.
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Libby supporting war resisters

November 13, 2009
Vancouver Courier
AWOL in VancouverFacing a second tour in Iraq, U.S. army corporal Rodney Watson fled to Canada and now lives in the First United Church on East Hastings while his government presses for his return. Watson was eventually ordered to leave the country Sept. 11, 2009, after two deportation stays during the summer.....On Aug. 12, seven B.C. NDP members of Parliament wrote the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, asking him to intervene in Watson's case. Libby Davies, MP for Vancouver East, was one of the signatories and says she will continue to support Watson in his fight to stay. "I believe he has a legal reason to seek refugee status in Canada," says Davies, noting that Watson's situation is more difficult than it appears. "He's taking on this whole system. It's obviously a very hard decision to make." Many people support his decision, Davies says. She points to an Angus Reid poll conducted in June 2008 with 64 per cent of Canadians supporting permanent residence for fugitive soldiers. "Canada has a history of welcoming war resisters," Davies says. A fugitive in Canada and the U.S., Watson sought refuge at the First United Church on East Hastings after meeting Rev. Ric Matthews at a press conference. Matthews says taking Watson in is part of church tradition.
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Libby calls on Justice Minister to stop extradition of Marc Emery

October 1, 2009 Open Letters to Ministers & Public Officials

September 28, 2009

The Honourable Rob Nicholson
Minister of Justice
105 East Block
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0A6

Dear Minister Nicholson,

I write once again to ask that you stop the extradition of Canadian Marc Emery to the United States and allow him to serve his prison sentence in Canada.

Canadian law enforcement officials have for a decade ignored Mr. Emery’s well publicized activities. I have expressed to you on many occasions my vehement opposition to sending Mr. Emery or any Canadian to face harsh punishment in another country when we have agreed as a society that these actions are not worthy of prosecution in Canada. Yet, your government has refused to intervene on Mr. Emery’s behalf and he will now serve a five year prison term in the United States.

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NDP MPs URGE HALT TO IRAQ WAR RESISTER DEPORTATION

August 12, 2008 Press Release

BURNABY: New Democrat MPs Libby Davies (Vancouver East), Peter Julian (Burnaby-New Westminster), Alex Atamanenko (British Columbia Southern Interior), Denise Savoie (Victoria), Jean Crowder (Nanimo Cowichan), Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway), and Bill Siksay (Burnaby-Douglas) have urged the federal government to stop all removal action against US Iraq war resister Rodney Watson.

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