Why one refugee has spent six months waiting for Canada to OK his trip to see his wife and children & More News Here

Egyptian refugee Hamada Abdelsalam has been saving each penny he can from his job as a deliveryman and Uber driver, generally even skimping on meals, so he can reunite with his wife and three youngsters.

He hasn’t seen them since he fled Cairo in June 2019 to search political asylum in Canada. He was granted refugee standing a 12 months later, and is waiting for his everlasting residence to convey the household over.

Abdelsalam’s solely possibility for now’s to meet them in a 3rd nation, however he should first get a refugee journey doc from Ottawa.

Last November, Abdelsalam utilized for a one-time refugee journey doc to meet with his wife and children in Germany. Today, after six months — and shedding $2,000 on the deposits and charges for his aircraft tickets, he’s nonetheless with out the wanted doc to see his household.

“I miss my wife and children dearly. I’m not travelling for fun. It is just basic humanity to be allowed to see your family,” says the 37-year-old Ottawa man, who additionally research IT at Algonquin College full time.

“This is a huge disappointment. I feel I’m being held hostage on this land.”

Since the onset of the worldwide pandemic in early 2020, Canada has stopped issuing refugee journey paperwork beneath the passport program besides for pressing journey. Even with the so-called “urgent cases,” critics say, immigration officers are so gradual to reply that it’s ineffective if somebody really had an pressing want to journey.

Now, with the easing of public well being restrictions, advocates for refugees say it’s time for Canada to resume routine journey doc providers for refugees.

“They have just never reinstated the general right to apply for a refugee travel document in non-urgent situations,” says Janet Dench, govt director of the Canadian Council for Refugees.

“It seems like a general tendency of the government to shut down things due to the pandemic and then restart most things as we supposedly get back to normal. But not things for refugees. It reflects as usual the low priority given to refugees.”

Immigration officers mentioned the general public well being and security measures in response to COVID-19 have tremendously decreased the federal government capability to course of passport and journey doc purposes.

“The passport program has had to focus on serving clients with a valid need for urgent travel, including medical and humanitarian reasons, serious illness or death, financial hardship or to support an essential service,” says immigration division spokesperson Jelena Jenko.

Jenko didn’t reply to questions on officers’ gradual response to pressing instances and when the division would totally resume the routine issuance of refugee journey paperwork.

One of immigration lawyer Jacqueline Bonisteel’s shoppers utilized in February for a refugee journey doc to go to his mom, who was going through a life-threatening coronary heart surgical procedure in Egypt. The plan was for him to convey his 4 children to see their grandmother for this one time in case she didn’t make it.

“This may be the last chance for the family to have the reunion that they have longed for over the course of many years. (He) is desperate to see his mother … and, if the worst happens, to say his final goodbyes in-person,” mentioned a letter accompanying his journey doc utility.

To date, the 43-year-old Libyan man, who had his asylum granted in October, has but to get an acknowledgement of his utility. Fortunately, his mom’s operation was profitable and she has since returned to Libya after spending three weeks recovering in Egypt.

“Frankly, I don’t see the ongoing reason for this. At the very least, I can understand that these applications may take time to process. But they put in this procedure to request urgent processing when you need it,” mentioned Bonisteel. “At the very least, that should be functioning and it doesn’t appear to be.”

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