கனடாவில் தவிக்கும்; படகு மூலம் கனடாவுக்குத் தப்பிவந்த 76 தமிழ்அகதிகள்…

5 thoughts on “கனடாவில் தவிக்கும்; படகு மூலம் கனடாவுக்குத் தப்பிவந்த 76 தமிழ்அகதிகள்…”

1. எந்த தமிழருக்கும் இலங்கையில் எதிர்காலம் இல்லை.கவலையடைய வேண்டாம் தமிழர்கள் நாங்கள் உதவி செய்வோம்.

2. உலக அரசுகளே, உங்களது கதவுகளை எங்களுக்காகத் திறந்து வையுங்கள். தயவு செய்து எங்களையும், எங்களது உயிர்களையும் காப்பாற்றுங்கள். நாங்கள் உங்களது பிள்ளைகள். தயவு செய்து, எங்களைப் பற்றி நினைத்துப் பாருங்கள்.

3. i am happy about the people who came from the ship.atleast that 76 tamil people are alive now.i am a canadian TAMIL and i welcome them and pray for them toooo.they dont have no other choice, they have to come like that. i wish them.

4. Canadian investigators have confirmed they are working with the government of Sri Lanka to determine the identities of 76 men taken into custody on a boat off Vancouver Island over the weekend.

   Most of the men are believed to be Tamils from Sri Lanka, fleeing the aftermath of the country’s violent civil war.

   That makes the men’s nationality and whether they might have links to the Tamil Tigers, a group listed as a banned terrorist organization, a sensitive issue for the Canadian government.

   Sri Lanka has been battered by decades of civil war with ongoing allegations of serious human rights abuses on both sides of the conflict — the Tamil Tigers and the government.

   ‘We’re aware of the political climate in Sri Lanka.’
   —RCMP Sgt. Duncan PoundSgt. Duncan Pound of the RCMP’s Border Integrity program said investigators are taking that into consideration as they work with Sri Lankan officials, but it’s important to find out if any of the men have criminal backgrounds.

   “We’re aware of the political climate in Sri Lanka, but right now our responsibility is to have a thorough investigation here in Canada that follows the evidence that we’re satisfied is solid,” said Pound.

   Pound said they’ve been receiving good co-operation from Sri Lankan officials, but wouldn’t say exactly what type of information is being exchanged.

   “We have had contact with other international partners, and that’s all part of our investigative process, in order to further confirm and drill down on the details of the individuals that were on the vessel, and then any questions we have on the vessel itself and the cargo,” said Pound.

   Shared intelligence leads to ship
   Meanwhile, Canada’s public safety minister says it was international intelligence sharing that help Canadian officials intercept the migrant ship the Ocean Lady as it arrived off the B.C. coast on the weekend.

   The seizure followed the interception of another ship en route from Sri Lanka to Australia a week earlier. According to news reports, passengers aboard that ship identified the Ocean Lady as a smuggling vessel carrying would-be migrants toward Canada.

   Public Safey Minister Peter Van Loan would not confirm it was Australian officials who tipped off their Canadian counterparts, but he did drop some strong hints on CBC Radio on Tuesday morning.

   “We always work very closely with our partners, and Australia is a very important partner with us on intelligence matters. On this case, we did have assistance from partners that helped us to identify this boat arriving on our shores,” said Van Loan.

   As for the future of the 76 men aboard, Van Loan said anyone at real risk of persecution will be given refugee status, and those who are not will be sent home.

   Meanwhile, the men remain in custody in Vancouver, where most are believed to be preparing refugee claims.

   They will likely face a series of hearings over the next few days, where authorities will determine if the men should be held in custody, or released until their cases are decided.

5. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
   OCTOBER 20, 2009

   GRANT TAMIL REFUGEES FAIR, DUE PROCESS: NEW DEMOCRATS

   OTTAWA – Today in Question Period, New Democrat MPs raised the issue of the 76 Tamil refugees detained in British Columbia.

   In the first question to the government, New Democrat MP Don Davies (Vancouver-Kingsway) spoke about how the Sri Lankan government is making life unbearable for the Tamil population, especially those who remain in detention camps.

   “New Democrats have called on this government to rally the world to pressure the Sri Lankan government. Failure to do so has only increased their desperation and attempts to flee,” he said. “Now there are 76 Tamils awaiting their fate in B.C. The least this government can do is grant these 76 men a fair hearing.”

   He asked Canada to pressure the Sri Lankan government to respect the human rights of Tamils and for the Minister of Immigration ensure due process is respected in the case of the 76 Tamil men currently in custody in B.C.

   New Democrat MP and Immigration Critic Olivia Chow (Trinity-Spadina) continued asking the government about the Immigration Minister’s unacceptable exploitation of the men in B.C. as an excuse to attack our immigration system.

   “Canada has seen a 26% drop in the number of refugees accepted from 2000 to 2008,” she said. “Our country is showing less compassion, closing the door on refugees while dramatically increasing the number of temporary foreign workers.”

   She reminded the government that Canada was built by boat loads of refugees and immigrants, yet now, under the Conservative government, refugees seeking shelter from war-torn countries, or fleeing violence and hunger, are called queue-jumpers.