A historic Federal Court ruling requires Canada to end the years-long arbitrary detention without charge endured by dozens of Canadian men, women and children in northeast Syrian jails and prison camps. Since Ottawa will drag its feet for the almost 50 Canadians still enduring conditions akin to torture (as it has for almost 6 years), we must pressure them (details on how below) to ensure the court order is implemented immediately because, in the words of Judge Brown, “Canadians are dying or at risk of dying every day this matter is adjourned.” February 15 marks the 2nd anniversary of the Canadian-led Global Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention, so what better way to celebrate than by returning all the Canadians (and the non-Canadian mothers of Canadian children), thereby putting an end to their Canadian-supported arbitrary detention? 

Learn about the decision at http://homesnotbombs.blogspot.com/2023/01/federal-court-orders-repatriation-of.html

SAMPLE EMAIL (be sure to include the CC-ed MPs and add your own MP if they are not already listed below!)
 
(Feel free to personalize with your own statement imagining what it would be like to know your loved ones have been condemned to these brutal camps and prisons and the Canadian government has refused to lift a finger for them, even going to court to try and prevent their return. Use a creative subject line as well that does not make your email look like it is computer-generated!)
 
To: Melanie.Joly@parl.gc.ca, Melanie.Joly@international.gc.ca

CC: pam.damoff@parl.gc.ca, rob.oliphant@parl.gc.ca, marco.mendicino@parl.gc.ca, michael.chong@parl.gc.ca, yasir.naqvi@parl.gc.ca, sameer.zuberi@parl.gc.ca, Marty.Morantz@parl.gc.ca, Stephane.Bergeron@parl.gc.ca, Rachel.Bendayan@parl.gc.ca, Hedy.Fry@parl.gc.ca, tasc@web.ca, Heather.McPherson@parl.gc.ca, alistair.macgregor@parl.gc.ca , Randeep.Sarai@parl.gc.ca, Chandra.Arya@parl.gc.ca, Peter.Schiefke@parl.gc.ca,  Kamal.Khera@parl.gc.ca,  Salma.Zahid@parl.gc.ca, Iqra.khalid@parl.gc.ca, Joel.Lightbound@parl.gc.ca, Ruby.Sahota@parl.gc.ca, Majid.Jowhari@parl.gc.ca,  pm@pm.gc.ca,  ps.ministerofpublicsafety-ministredelasecuritepublique.sp@canada.ca , jagmeet.singh@parl.gc.ca
 

Dear Minister Joly,

The historic January 20, 2023 Federal Court ruling calling on you to repatriate four Canadian men illegally and arbitrarily detained in northeast Syria – and your own commitment made the day before to repatriate 19 women and children – means it is time to immediately  bring everyone home (including the Canadians not identified in the lawsuit and the non-Canadian mothers of Canadian children). This should occur no later than February 15, 2023, the second anniversary of the Canadian-led Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention.

Every day you fail to bring these long-suffering Canadians home, you perpetuate their arbitrary detention, forcing them to suffer conditions the UN calls akin to torture. You also increase their exposure to the risk posed by the ongoing bombings of the area by Turkish drones and fighter jets.  

Justice Henry Brown of the Federal Court stated in December: “Canadians are dying or at risk of dying every day this matter is adjourned.” Every moment of your delay increases the risk for the children, men and women. 

Justice Brown declared in his January 20, 2023 decision that, as soon as reasonably possible, “Canada must make a formal request for their repatriation,” that the detainees “must be provided necessary travel documents,” and Canada be required to  “appoint either a delegate or representative to accept their hand over.” He made these findings based on well-settled Supreme Court of Canada jurisprudence and Canada’s international treaty obligations “in the expectation the executive government will act in good faith as its counsel represented to the Court.”

You can show good faith by not dragging this out for months and months in the same manner your government has looked the other way for years despite being called on to enact repatriation by the world’s leading human rights organizations, the United Nations, your U.S. State Dept. allies, a Parliamentary Committee, the Kurdish authorities who hold the detained Canadians, and tens of thousands of Canadians.

Canada has already repatriated 7 of its female and child citizens from the region. It has the necessary contacts on the ground in northeast Syria. It has the support of the world’s most powerful military, American Forces who remain on the ground. Most importantly, it has the consent and clear request of Kurdish authorities who hold the Canadians. 

As Global Affairs Minister, you have already made an agreement to repatriate 19 additional women and children originally identified in the lawsuit. Adding the four men in Justice Brown’s order – where as he stated "the legal principles applicable to the Canadian men are the same as those applicable to the Canadian women and children” – should pose no problems. 

In addition, you must repatriate all the Canadians not identified in the lawsuit (as well as the non-Canadian mothers of Canadian children, since your notorious Policy Framework clearly states you will not separate children from parents. I was horrified to learn that Global Affairs Canada delivered an ultimatum to these mothers to either give up their children and possibly never see them again or to keep them in these camps where conditions are akin to torture.)

I am disappointed that the Canadian government has repeatedly used unsubstantiated “national security” concerns to justify its failure to assist these Muslim Canadians in coming home. Justice Brown clearly wrote, “Notably the [government] Respondents do not allege any of the Applicants [detainees] engaged in or assisted in terrorist activities. The Respondents affirmed this position at the hearing.” He also stated there was no evidence before the court that anyone had committed offences contrary to Canadian law.

 “The primacy of the right to return to Canada is reinforced in Canadian law,” Brown writes in his decision. “This is also a critical factor in this Judgment. Simply put, there is no known offence in Canada that carries with it exile or banishment as a penal consequence,” yet both by Canadian actions and conscious inaction, exile or banishment were plainly the result for Canadians stuck in northeast Syria. Indeed, Brown carefully cited jurisprudence that Section 6(1) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms – whose 40th anniversary you celebrated last year – “forbids the executive from frustrating the rights of Canadians to enter and return whether by executive actions taken in Canada or abroad.”

For too long, you have frustrated and denied the rights of these Canadians. The Court has called on you to bring these Canadians home. I expect them to be home as soon as possible, and certainly no later than February 15, 2023.
 
 
Name
Town/City

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SAMPLE Call (feel free to use your own wording)
Mélanie Joly
613-992-0983 (Ottawa office)
514-383-3709 (Montreal office)

You may or may not get an answering machine (if you do, please leave a message).

Hi, my name is XXXXXXXX and I'm calling from XXXXXXX. Last week, the Federal Court ordered Minister Joly to bring home four Canadian men arbitrarily detained in northeast Syria under conditions akin to torture. Ms Joly also agreed to bring home 19 women and kids last week. Given that she has ignored all prior requests to bring these long-suffering Canadians home, I am concerned that Minister Joly will do everything in her power to delay, avoid, and ultimately disregard this clear court order. The judge in the case said “Canadians are dying or at risk of dying every day this matter is adjourned.” I am calling on Ms. Joly to immediately bring everyone home – all Canadians and the non-Canadian mothers of Canadian children –  in time for the 2nd anniversary of the Global Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention on February 15, 2023. Thank you.