Demand Status for Abdelkader Belaouni

::: ABDEKADER BELAOUNI IS IN SANCTUARY INSIDE A MONTREAL CHURCH :::
::: CALL THE NEW MINISTER OF IMMIGRATION TODAY!:::

17 February 2006
"I'm not hiding from Immigration Canada, but I want to tell them clearly, I will not be presenting myself for deportation. I've been able to achieve autonomy and dignity in Montreal, and I don't want to lose that. My family are my friends here. I am here to defend myself; I am here to defend justice".
-Abdelkader Belaouni, January 3, 2005

UPDATE: A petition in support of Abdelkader Belaouni can now be signed online at www.petitiononline.com/kader/petition.html. We're aiming to get 15,000 signatures by March 1st!

On January 1 2006, Abdelkader Belaouni took sanctuary at St. Gabriel’s Church in Point St. Charles, Montreal. After nearly three years of making a home for himself in Montreal, working hard to establish a dignified, autonomous and secure life, Abdelkader was faced with a deportation order from Immigration Canada. With no other viable option, Abdelkader chose to take sanctuary in St. Gabriel's Church, determined to continue his struggle to secure a peaceful and dignified life. Since taking sanctuary, several organizations, friends, community members, and politicians alike have come out in support of status for Abdelkader. Backed by this broad base of support, the Committee to Support Abdelkader Belaouni has launched a public campaign to request that to the new Minister of Citizenship and Immigration: REGULARISE ABDELKADER'S STATUS NOW!

Last Monday, the newly elected Conservative Party came into power. In order to ensure that Abdelkader's demand for status is immediately brought to the attention of the new Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Monte Solberg, during his first weeks in office, we are calling for a PHONE/FAX/EMAIL campaign. We are encouraging you to contact Minister Solberg to ask:

1) That he grant permanent resident status to Abdelkader Belaouni now;
2) That he make it a priority to meet with Abdelkader Belaouni and supporters to get a firsthand account of his situation.

A model letter is included below.

If you already contacted former Immigration Minister Joe Volpe, thank you for your support! We strongly encourage you to follow up on your efforts by placing a phone call to the new Minister of Citizenship and Immigration's office, informing him of Abdelkader's case and his demands, and to fax/e-mail a copy of your original letter to him. It is essential that we continue demonstrate to the new government that this situation is a priority and that we continue to demonstrate our support for Abdelkader's just demand!

:::MINISTER CONTACT INFORMATION:::
Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Monte Solberg
Tel: 613-992-4516 (Ottawa)
or toll free 1-800-565-4694 (Alberta)
Fax: 613-992-6181
E-mail: solberg.m@parl.gc.ca AND minister@cic.gc.ca

Please contact the support committee at soutienkader@gmail.com or 514-859-9023 to send us a copy of your letter or to let us know you have called.

For a sample letter, see below.

:::BACKGROUND:::

On 1 January 2006, Abdelkader Belaouni took sanctuary in St. Gabriel's Church in the neighbourhood of Point St. Charles, Montreal. After exhausting all recourses to remain legally in Canada, Abdelkader was facing deportation on January 5th, 2006. For him, deportation would mean losing the dignity, autonomy and security for which he had worked so hard to achieve since settling in Montreal nearly three years ago. Abdelkader had no other option but to make the courageous decision to take sanctuary in St. Gabriel's Church.

If Abdelkader had not taken sanctuary, he would have been deported to the United States, and from there to Algeria on 5 January. Abdelkader had already been uprooted twice in the past ten years. The first time was in 1996, when he fled a violent civil conflict in Algeria, his country of birth. The conflict took the lives of 100,000 civilians. As a blind man, Abdelkader was especially at risk. When members of one of the armed groups came to his family grocery store and told him he had to help pay for their fight or be killed, he fled the country.

Abdelkader made his way to New York City. Though he never gained legal status, he was able to make a life for himself by selling telephone cards from a booth on the street. But following September 11th, 2001, Abdelkader no longer felt safe. There were violent attacks on Muslims and Arabs, and on people thought to be Muslim or Arab. Mosques were fire-bombed. Racial profiling became government policy. Abdelkader was told to report to officials, simply because he was born in Algeria. After two confusing and humiliating interviews, he was given a deportation hearing. Abdelkader chose to flee to Canada, hoping that he could build a life for himself here.

After nearly three years of making a home for himself here in Montreal however, Abdelkader was again facing displacement. Immigration Canada's decision to deport him did not take into account the fact that he was working as a volunteer, that he had a strong family of friends, nor that he faced serious barriers to finding paid work as a blind person and was not eligible for equal opportunity programmes because he had no status. Upon receiving news of his deportation order, a committee of friends and neighbours immediately formed to support Abdelkader. Shortly there after, neighbourhood church offered him sanctuary. Abdelkader's decision to stay in Montreal was courageous and inspiring, and his demand for status has been supported
by over forty organizations, including Comité Action Refugié, the Multiethnic centre for the integration of the handicapped into Quebec, Entraide Missionaire, the Diocese of Montreal, and organizations from his neighbourhood such as the Table de Concertation Action Gardien,
Point St. Charles Legal Aid, the community health clinic, and the Welfare Rights Committee.

As long as Abdelkader is forced to put his life on hold while he waits in sanctuary, it is crucial that we continue to put pressure on government officials to take immediate action on his case. We urge you to join countless friends, neighbours, and community organizations in supporting Abdelkader Belaouni's demand for a complete regularization of his status now!

:: SAMPLE LETTER ::

Feel free to use the following letter as a model. Please also feel free to personalize the text as much as possible.

ATTN: Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Monte Solberg
(Address)
(Place, date)

Re : Abdelkader Belaouni

Dear Minister Solberg,

I write this letter to draw attention to the case of Mr. Abdelkader Belaouni, in response to a call for support from the Committee to Support Abdelkader Belaouni. It has been brought to my attention that Mr. Abdelkader Belaouni has been forced to take sanctuary in St. Gabriel's Church in Point St. Charles, Montreal in order to avoid deportation at the hands of Immigration Canada. I am writing you to encourage you, in your new capacity as Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, to take immediate action on this case, as outlined below.

Since moving to Montreal nearly three years ago, Mr. Belaouni has worked hard to achieve a life of dignity, autonomy and security for himself. However, as is the case of many thousands of other non-status people living in Canada, Immigration Canada left Abdelkader with no choice but to defy his deportation order, and, in his case, to take sanctuary. As a result of the significant contributions and strong connections he has made in his community, and more broadly in Montreal, Abdelkader he has seen an outpouring of support from Montreal-based organizations and countless individuals since taking sanctuary. While confined to the rooms of St. Gabriel's Church for already more than one month, his struggle against deportation and for status continues.

I am writing to you today to express my support for Abdelkader Belaouni's demand that the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada:

1) Immediately regularize the status of Abdelkader Belaouni.
2) Make a meeting with Abdelkader and his support committee a priority

As the Minister of Citizenship and Immigrations, you have the power to grant him permanent resident status on humanitarian grounds. I therefore urge you to exercise your power to grant Mr. Abdelkader Belaouni status in Canada immediately.

Sincerely,

YOUR NAME HERE
ADDRESS

CC:
Stephen Harper, Office of the Prime Minister of Canada:
Email: pm@pm.gc.ca
Fax: 613 941 6900

Stockwell Day, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Email: Day.S@parl.gc.ca
Fax: (613) 943-0044

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This appeal is issued by the Committee to Support Abdelkader Belaouni. For more information, or to get involved with the committee, contact us by phone or e-mail, or visit our website.

e-mail: soutienkader@gmail.com
telephone: (514) 859-9023
website: www.soutienpourkader.net