UPDATE: Following her appointment this morning with CBSA agent Liette Malenfant, Paola Ortiz was given a new deportation date for this Friday September 23 at 6 AM.
PLEASE KEEP UP THE PRESSURE!
On Tuesday, Public Security Minister Vic Toews stated that the decision to deport Paola was no longer in her hands. However, we know that is not true and that both Ministers Toews and Kenney still have the power to stop Paola’s deportation.
HOW TO HELP :
–> Keep calling Toews and Kenney. Tell them they WILL be held responsible for their actions ::: At this point, phone calls and faxes are more effective than email :
Send your cheque to :
Solidarity Across Borders c/o QPIRG-Concordia
QPIRG Concordia
c/o Concordia University
1455 de Maisonneuve O
Montreal, Quebec H3G 1M8
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECanada sticks to hard-line position on Paola Ortiz, orders her deportation for Friday
MONTREAL, SEPTEMBER 21—The Canadian government is sticking its hard line position on deporting Paola Ortiz, despite the significant public support the woman of Mexican origin has received in recent days.
At her meeting this morning, at which she was denied accompaniment, Ms. Ortiz received a new notice of deportation from Canadian Border Services agent Liette Malenfant. Ms. Ortiz must present herself Friday, September 23 at 6 am, at the CBSA offices on Peel Street, from where she will be escorted to Trudeau airport, en route to Mexico.
Solidarity Across Borders denounces the inhumanity of this decision and the silence of the federal and provincial authorities. “Minister of Public Security Vic Toews declared that he had no reason to intervene in Paola’s expulsion, although the reality of violence against many women in Mexico, and the near total impunity for perpetrators of this violence is well known and documented” said Sophie Schoen, of Solidarity Across Borders. “Despite what he said Tuesday, Minister Toews still has the power to intervene in the file and to suspend Paola’s deportation,” Schoen added. “He must understand that he will be responsible for the fate of Paola and her children if she is sent back to Mexico.”
Mrs. Ortiz has decided to leave without her two children of age 2 and 4 years old, who suffer from autism and hearing problems, on the grounds that they will be safer in Quebec than in Mexico, and will also be able to receive the medical care they require here.
A demonstration took place this morning in front of the CBSA offices during Ms. Ortiz’s meeting, bringing together representatives of several womens groups, including the Fédération des femmes du Québec (FFQ) and the Regroupement des maisons pour femmes victimes de violence conjugale. Also present was André Boulerice, the former Quebec minister of immigration, who declared “This is an odious decision without any humanity. It denies the rights of two Canadian citizen children–the right to be with their mother.”
Alexandra Pierre of the FFQ, affirmed that “In seeking Ms. Ortiz’s expulsion, the authorities are complicit in violence against women, and in trivializing that violence. They are also ignoring their obligations towards children born on Canadian territory.”
Paola Ortiz’s case received support from more than thirty groups and more than two hundred individuals. All are unanimous in their denunciation of her deportation, and call for her to be able to stay in Canada with her children.
In addition, an emergency vigil will be held on Thursday, September 22nd at 6 PM in front of Complexe Guy-Favreau to denounce Paola’s imminent deportation and reiterate community support for Paola and outrage over the decision to remove her from Canada.
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Media contacts:
Daniel: 438-875-4714
Julie Marcoux: 514-839-1657