Today, July 2nd, is a National Day of Action to Stop the Deportation of War Resister Corey Glass.
Canada's War Resisters Support Campaign asks you to call Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada:
U.S.
Iraq War resister Corey Glass is still facing deportation on July 10th, despite
the Parliament of Canada having voted in favour of a motion to let Corey and other
U.S. war resisters stay.
The
federal government and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration must respect
the will of Parliament and implement the motion which calls on the government
to “immediately implement a program to allow conscientious objectors and
their immediate family members […] to apply for permanent resident status
and remain in Canada; and … the government should immediately cease any removal
or deportation actions … against such individuals.”
On
July 2nd, the War Resisters Support Campaign is calling on all supporters to call
Minister Diane Finley and ask her to:
• STOP deportation proceedings
against Corey Glass and all U.S. Iraq war resisters; and
• IMPLEMENT
the motion adopted by Canada’s Parliament to allow U.S. Iraq war resisters
to apply for permanent resident status.
Here
are the numbers to call:
Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane
Finley
613.996.4974
MP
Diane Finley’s constituency office (Simcoe):
519.426.3400
Or
email her at:
[email protected]
or
[email protected]
Corey Glass is among the refuseniks across the world who are resisting Imperialist wars.
Payday is an international and multiracial network of men which works with the Global Women’s Strike. From their website:
We have groups in London, the Philippines and in Philadelphia. We work with other men in other countries, including Chile, Canada, Guyana, India, Ireland, Italy,Kenya, Spain, Uganda and Venezuela.
We are from many walks of life, waged and unwaged, urban and rural, fathers,carers, immigrants, gay, bisexual and straight, of different races, ages, members of community organizations and trade unions. Like the rest of the Strike, we are independent of political parties.
We organise on the basis of the Strike’s central demand: that society must
Invest in Caring, not Killing -- that money spent on military budgets must go instead to communities, which means first of all to women, who are internationally the primary carers.
All our organising is done in close consultation with women from the Strike to
ensure that we do not ignore or contradict women’s and children needs.We have benefited from the leadership provided by the Strike, whose starting point is the worker who does (most of) the caring, and are encouraged to know that the revolution in Venezuela has also been spearheaded by women, which is acknowledged by President Chávez.(We are happy to know he has said publicly that he wants to join the Strike.) Finding ways to work with women and children, and other men is, we believe, our biggest challenge as well as our only chance for survival.
Over the years we have been involved in many campaigns and initiatives, namely: in
defence of welfare, anti-deportation, anti-war, support for waged workers on strike (the Fire Brigades Union was the latest), pay equity disputes,and many anti-racist initiatives, including No School Apartheid: protesting the segregation of the children of asylum seekers, mainly Third World children of colour.
Our main initiative in the last few years has been Refusing to Kill: gathering
support around the world for men (and increasingly women) who refuse to torture, maim, rape and kill for the military. Until an end for any need for them, armies must be used to defend and support communities -- as in Venezuela -- not for aggression.
We have initiated international campaigns in support of refuseniks in Israel,Turkey and the US; and highlighted the key role that women play in supporting conscientious objectors, “deserters”, draft evaders and whistleblowers.
In 2004 we supported Alex Izett, Scottish veteran from the First Gulf War in
1991, who went on hunger strike demanding the recognition of Gulf War
Syndrome, which has killed or disabled thousands of soldiers and members
of their families. His protest won the Independent Inquiry in London and official recognition that the Syndrome exists. We have been networking with organisations in the US, in France and Italy on this issue.
In the United States, we have been part of an anti-racist self-help campaign to
inform students and parents of their right to Opt Out – to refuse to
allow schools to give military recruiters access to students’ home phone
numbers and addresses .Young people in Black, Latino, and other low-income are targeted by military recruiters, despite broad and increasing to US wars,especially in communities of colour.
Links:
War Resisters Support Campaign
The Payday Network
Resources:
'Canada in Afghanistan: Peacekeeper or Warmonger?' by Ian Sinclair via New Socialist
UPDATE: Canadian Federal Court ruled that the immigration board erred “by concluding that refugee protection for military deserters and
evaders is only available where the conduct objected to amounts to a
war crime, a crime against peace or a crime against humanity." Officially condoned military misconduct could still support a refugee
claim, even if it falls short of a war crime.
Recent Comments