[IPSM] Demo Report: Solidarity Across Borders! (Montreal)

[Jaggi Singh]

----- Forwarded message from No One is Illegal Montreal
<noii-montreal at resist.ca> -----

[This e-mail contains : 1) Solidarity Across Borders march report; 2)
Why we are marching? (text from demo flyer); 3) Article from Montreal
Gazette]

1) DEMO REPORT:

MONTREAL, April 25, 2004 -- Several hundred protesters, representing
refugee and immigrant rights organizations and their allies, marched
through the streets of downtown Montreal yesterday afternoon as part of
a mobilization titled "Solidarity Across Borders."

The diverse demonstration involved the participation of several
contingents of self-organized refugee groups, as well as many
individuals who are facing deportation in the coming days and weeks. The
march proceeded along Ste-Catherine Street from Cabot Square near the
Old Forum, ending at the the Complexe Guy-Favreau, headquarters of the
Immigration and Refugee Board.

During the spirited march -- with music, slogans and spontaneous
speeches along the route -- an oversize banner was dropped from a
highrise building between St-Alexandre and Bleury, within view of the
demonstrators and bystanders. The banner, in French, read : "DEPORTATION
CANADA : 50,000 expulsions in 5 years" (the statistic comes directly
from Immigration Canada).

The banner-drop follows from a previous series of banner-drops by local
refugee rights activists in early April (for more info, in French-only,
consult:
http://www.cmaq.net/fr/node.php?id=16235&PHPSESSID=cee9ec9124cb6c9fc7ec6c637bd6bd34).

There were several speakers at the beginning and end of the march,
including Clifton Nicholas of the Kanesatake Mohawk Community, Hind
Charkaoui (sister of Adil Charkaoui, who is currently detained without
charge or trial on a security certificate), Sophie Harkat (wife of
Mohamed Harkat, also detained without charge or trial on a security
certificate) and Alexis, a Colombian refugee residing in Montreal.

Other speakers included: Shamim of the Action Committee of Pakistani
Refugees Against Racial Profiling, Fawzi of the Action Committee of
Non-Status Algerians, and Osama of the Coalition Against the Deportation
of Palestinian Refugees. Shamim, Fawzi and Osama are all facing
deportation in the coming days and weeks.

During a media scrum prior to the demonstration, another refugee facing
deportation also spoke out : Nora, of the Action Committee of Non-Status
Algerians, has lived in Canada for more than a decade, with 5
Canadian-born children. Her status in Canada is still unresolved, and
she too faces deportation to Algeria in the coming weeks.

All speakers reinforced the basic demands of the Solidarity Across
Borders campaign : the regularization of the status of all non-status
persons; an end to the detention and deportation of migrants and
refugees; and the abolition of security certificates.

There was significant mainstream media coverage of the demonstration,
with radio and television reports, as well as articles in La Presse and
the Montreal Gazette (attached below).

The Solidarity Across Borders network in Montreal has been meeting and
organizing since the No One Is Illegal march against the WTO in Montreal
last July 2003. The network has supported the demands and organizing
efforts of the participating groups, as well as organize a cultural
evening (with over 300 participants). The Saturday march also marked the
launch of a "Solidarity Across Borders" 8-page newspaper (with separate
editions in English and French).

Solidarity Across Borders members in Montreal include: The Coalition
Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees; The Action Committee of
Non-Status Algerians; The Pakistani Action Committee Against Racial
Profiling; Colombianos Unidos; No One Is Illegal-Montreal, The Justice
Coalition For Adil Charkaoui, The Mohamed Cherfi Solidarity Committee,
The Support Committee for Basque Political Prisoners, The Kurdish
Institute of Montreal, The South Asian Women's Community Center,
Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights, NEFAC, Block the Empire, McGill
Students Against War and Racism, Libertad, and many other groups and
individuals.

For more information, or to stay in touch, please contact
noii-montreal at resist.ca or 514-859-9023.

-----

2) FLYER TEXT

(The following flyer was passed out, in English and French, to thousands
of bystanders and passers-by during the Solidarity Across Borders
demonstration this past Saturday.)

WHY WE ARE MARCHING?

Today's march -- titled "Solidarity Across Borders" -- brings together
migrants, refugees and their Quebec and Canadian allies. We are marching
together to demand basic justice and dignity for immigrants and
refugees, as part of a worldwide movement of resistance against unjust
laws, policies and institutions.

There have always been structural flaws in Canada's refugee and
immigration system, and a documented and lived history of racism (the
exclusion of Chinese migrants after Confederation, and the refusal of
Jewish refugees from Nazi-occupied Europe during the Second World War,
are two well-known examples). Canada -- a colonial project built on the
brutal dispossession of the indigenous peoples of Turtle Island from
their lands -- continues to uphold neo-colonial policies that both
exploit and exclude migrants.

Recent changes to immigration and security laws and policies have served
to scapegoat migrants -- especially those of Arab, Muslim and South
Asian origin -- and create a self-declared "fortress" against newcomers.
If today's immigration standards were applied to the generation of
migrants who came to Quebec and Canada in the late 1960s, 1970s and
early 1980s -- people who now make up the very fabric of Montreal --
they would have had very little chance of becoming residents, and
Montreal would be a lesser place.

Today, as we march, at least three Montreal-area families remain in
sanctuary in local churches, in defiance of deportation orders by
Immigration Canada. Two of those families have been in sanctuary for
more than 9 months, with their children unable to attend school during
that time. Another outspoken refugee -- a non-status Algerian named
Mohamed Cherfi -- had his church sanctuary violated by police and was
summarily deported to the United States.

Hundreds more -- whether from Algeria or Palestine, Pakistan or Colombia
-- face potential deportation in the coming days and months. In some
cases, families are facing deportation to zones of war, occupation and
civil conflict. In other cases, families have lived and worked in
Montreal for several years, with Canadian-born children.

The "border panic" and scapegoating of migrants has also meant an attack
on basic civil liberties. Almost one year ago, a Montrealer named Adil
Charkaoui was arrested without charge. He has since been detained, and
like other men in his situation, denied even the basic right to a fair
trial.

As you can imagine, there are literally hundreds and hundreds of cases
that we can share with you, and thousands of individuals and families
who are directly affected.

Today we march to take our case to you -- the Montreal public -- and to
ask for your solidarity and support with the men and women who are an
integral part of our community. Our demands include the regularization
of all non-status people, an end to the deportation and detention of
migrants, and the abolition of security certificates.

While the Solidarity Across Borders campaign is currently a modest
effort, it remains rooted in the profound struggle for
self-determination, justice and dignity by migrants acting for
themselves, and the strength that comes when we are united to face and
confront unjust policies, laws and institutions together.

For more information : nooneisillegal at tao.ca or 514-859-9023

-----

3) GAZETTE ARTICLE

Protesters slam immigration policy

Demand government halt deportation. Hundreds of refugee claimants in
Montreal have seen their attempts to stay denied

TRISTAN BAURICK
The Gazette

Sunday, April 25, 2004

A 16-year-old Pakistani refugee claimant wheeled her sister's stroller
through a crowd of hundreds of supporters yesterday, but despite their
cheers, her voice trembled with sadness.

"There is no joy," Sadaf Ali Khan said. "I have tried my best in school,
but now I can't finish. I tried in vain."

Ali Khan was one of about 350 people who marched through downtown
Montreal yesterday demanding the Canadian government halt the
deportation of immigrants seeking refugee status.

"Our refugee status was refused," she said. "I don't know when we will
go, but I cannot finish school. I only had one year left."

Ali Khan said her Shiite Muslim family faces violent persecution in
Pakistan from the Sunni Muslim majority. Besides an estimated 200
Pakistanis, hundreds of other immigrants in Montreal have seen their
refugee claims denied. They come from Colombia, Algeria, Ethiopia and
refugee camps in Israel and Lebanon.

The diverse crowd spilled onto Ste. Catherine St. shortly after 1 p.m.
They moved east from Cabot Square on Atwater Ave. into the heart of
downtown.

Rick Horne, a tourist from Guelph, Ont., watched from the entrance of a
restaurant.

"I disagree with opening the gates to illegal immigrants," the
British-born Canadian said, adding that immigrants put a financial
strain on taxpayers.

"Too many will bankrupt the system," he said.

Fawzi Hoceini, an Algerian awaiting deportation, said citizenship would
benefit both refugee claimants and Canada.

"We can benefit the economy and build a community here," he said. "If we
have status, we can find work and pay taxes."

Hoceini is married to a Canadian, but the months ahead are clouded with
uncertainty.

"We want to start a family," he said. "But I don't see any future for a
life together."

Rabie Masri, an organizer with the Coalition Against the Deportation of
Palestinian Refugees, said Refugee Board commissioners have tightened
restrictions toward refugee claimants since last September. He said
Canadians are increasingly fearful of immigrants from war-torn
countries.

"The word 'refugee' is often associated with a threatening tone and is
almost always negative," Masri said.

"We want to change that," he added.

Masri represented one of more than 20 groups that organized the march,
including No One is Illegal, the Action Committee for Non-Status
Algerians and the Kurd Institute of Montreal.

Demonstrators ended their march with speeches just after 4 p.m. outside
the Canadian immigration office at Complexe Guy Favreau.


----- End forwarded message -----