[van-announce] Vancouver Flying Squad Action in Solidarity with Non-Status Algerians

[No One Is Illegal - Van]

Flying Squad Action in Solidarity with the Action Committee for Non-Status 
Algerians in Montreal
Friday, July 11
12:30 pm
Victory Square (Cambie and Hastings)

Support the struggle of Montreal's Non-Status Algerians and show solidarity 
with those arrested and facing charges and possible deportations after the 
Action Committee's occupation of Immigration Minister Denis Coderre's office 
in Ottawa. The Action Committee of Non-Status Algerians will also be 
protesting in Ottawa on July 11 in support of the May 29 occupation 
defendants.

No One Is Illegal - Vancouver
noii_van at hotmail.com

Background -

AN OPEN LETTER from the Action Committee for Non-Status Algerians and the No 
One Is Illegal Campaign of Montreal:

As many of you know, last Thursday, May 29th, 10 non-status Algerians and 2 
supporters from the No One Is Illegal Campaign of Montreal occupied the 
waiting room of Immigration Minister Denis Coderre's Ottawa Office. They 
were demanding a face-to-face meeting with Minister and a just solution for 
individuals facing deportation to Algeria because they are excluded from the 
regularization process put into place by Canada and Quebec Immigration.

The police response to this occupation was brutal. At approximately 10:30 
PM, about 30 members of the Ottawa Police Services tactical squad, in 
coordination with the RCMP, charged the people occupying the waiting room. 
After forcing them to the ground, the police beat and Tasered many of the 
men on their necks, backs, torsos and genitals. One man was bashed on the 
head with the butt of a Taser gun, leaving a large gash on his forehead. 
Another man lost a tooth as a result of being punched in the face by a 
police officer. Several people have Taser burns on the backs of their neck, 
backs and arms. The 12 occupiers were arrested, charged with mischief over 
$5,000, and released from jail the next day.

Ottawa police also used Tasers against protesters at the support 
demonstration outside the Immigration Canada building. Francine Dumas and 
Michele Marois , a mother and daughter from Hull, were arrested after 
protesting when police Tasered and arrested a third Ottawa-area activist. 
They were detained by police for 36 hours before being released on the 
completely unconstitutional condition that they not attend a demonstration 
anywhere in Canada. Michele was charged with obstruction; Francine was 
charged with assault police and obstruction.

The Action Committee for Non-Status Algerians and members of the No One Is 
Illegal Campaign of Montreal denounce the brutality, racism and impunity 
with which Ottawa Police Services and the RCMP ended the occupation of 
Minister Coderre's office. We join Amnesty International and the Ligue des 
droits et libertes in demanding an independent, impartial and public inquiry 
into what happened in the Immigration Minister's offices on May 29th, 2003, 
in order that all those responsible, including police and their superiors be 
held accountable for their actions.

We also demand full police disclosure of any and all evidence relating to 
their operation on May 29th, 2003, including any and all communication with 
Minister Coderre and/or the Minister's Office, and all surveillance and 
intelligence.

The Action Committee for Non-Status Algerians has no intention of allowing 
this or any other display of racist police brutality to deter us from 
continuing to mobilize and struggle for justice for all non-status people. 
We stand firm in demanding, as we have for the past year and a half, that 
Immigration Canada stop the deportations, reinstate the moratorium on 
deportations to Algeria and regularize all non-status Algerians living in 
Canada.

The No One Is Illegal Campaign of Montreal reiterates its support for the 
Action Committee's demands. We maintain that Immigration Minister Denis 
Coderre must be held accountable for the wounds and humiliation inflicted on 
protesters in his office last Thursday. The Ottawa Police Services and the 
RCMP coordinated their brutal response strategy with the Immigration 
Minister's Office. Coderre's hands have been bloodied and his credibility as 
Immigration Minister has been tainted by the police violence perpetrated 
against the people occupying his office, as well as by his ongoing refusal 
to meet with the Action Committee for Non-Status Algerians. We demand that 
he resign from his position as Immigration Minister immediately.

No One Is Illegal will continue to support the struggle of the Action 
Committee for Non-Status Algerians and all non-status people for full 
regularization. The brutality demonstrated by all levels of police and 
government incite us to intensify our efforts to disrupt the bureaucracies 
and border controls that limit the rights of migrants to freedom of movement 
and self-determination. We will continue to stand in solidarity with 
immigrants, refugees and non-status people struggling for the right to live 
and move, in security and dignity, wherever they choose.

As we proceed in this struggle, we ask for the solidarity and support of 
other groups and individuals. There are a number of ways you can help, and 
some of them are listed below. If you have other ideas, please don't 
hesitate to get in touch.

In solidarity & struggle,
The Action Committee for Non-Status Algerians (CASS)
cassdz at yahoo.fr

No One Is Illegal (Montreal)
nooneisillegal at tao.ca

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