Canada court: AWOL U.S. soldiers not refugees

Kari Huus Reporter • Profile • E-mail

The Supreme Court of Canada on Thursday refused to hear an appeal by two U.S. military deserters who sought refuge in the country to avoid deployment to Iraq, a conflict they argued is “immoral and illegal.”

The announcement ends a bid by American soldiers Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey, the plaintiffs in the case, to win refugee status and opens the way for them to be deported to the United States, where they could face court martial for going AWOL and missing troop movements.  It also could lead to deportation of dozens of other American soldiers who have filed formal applications for refugee status. 

“Theoretically they (are) facing immediate removal,” said Jeffry House, a Toronto lawyer who represents most of the U.S. refugee applicants, including Hinzman and Hughey. The Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the case, “vastly advances the government’s agenda to remove them,” he said.

The rejection also closes off that legal avenue for other U.S. military personnel who have gone to Canada and remained illegally. House estimates there are at least 300 AWOL U.S. soldiers living in Canada.

Board deems legality of conflict irrelevant
Hinzman and Hughey both deserted from the U.S. Army and came to Canada to avoid imminent deployments to Iraq. Their case for refugee status rested on the argument that the military action in Iraq is illegal and, based on the United Nations convention on refugees, they cannot be prosecuted for failure to serve in an illegal conflict.

The men’s argument failed to sway Canada’s Immigration Review Board and two Canadian courts before their appeal was rejected by the Supreme Court.

“The immigration board said, with input from the government, that the illegality of the war is irrelevant to these immigration claims, “ said Michelle Robidoux, a Toronto-based activist with the War Resisters Support Campaign. “We believe it is very much connected.”

Canada, under then-Prime Minister Jean Chretién did not commit troops to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and most Canadians do not support the war, polls show. The country does have troops serving in Afghanistan.

Canadian immigration officials said that no more than 40 refugee claims have been filed by American soldiers. House, however, said the number is significantly higher, noting that he has handled 45 to 50 claims himself.  Based on the number of inquiries he has received from AWOL U.S. soldiers, he estimates there are about 300 American military deserters living in Canada, adding that many of them entered the country after serving combat tours in Iraq.

Support from Vietnam era runaways
The new arrivals have been coached, housed and supported by some of the Vietnam era anti-war activists and draft dodgers who took advantage of Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau’s famous declaration of his country as a “refuge from militarism.”

House himself left the United States and came to Canada in 1970 after he was drafted.

There are significant differences between Canada’s position on the Vietnam War and the war in Iraq, however. The most obvious is that the current deserters were not conscripted, but signed up to serve in a volunteer military.

And the current exodus to Canada is small in comparison to the Vietnam era, when an estimated 20,000 to 50,000 Americans moved to Canada to avoid military duty, many of them settling there permanently.

With Thursday's setback, activists with the War Resisters Support Campaign in Canada are focusing on securing a political solution. They organized "emergency rallies" to take place in six Canadian cities Thursday night in an effort to pressure members of Parliament to forge a provision to allow resisters and their families to stay in Canada.

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