The Montreal Gazette reports that, “Iraq war resisters from the United States won’t be given permanent shelter in Canada after a bill to let them stay was defeated in the House of Commons Wednesday evening. Although Liberal MP Gerard Kennedy had said he was willing to negotiate the terms of his proposed legislation, it was shot down 143 to 136, with an almost-full House of Conservatives opposing it.” The Ottawa Citizen adds that, “Kennedy’s bill was defeated in a second-reading vote in the House of Commons on Wednesday night, with (Liberal leader Michael) Ignatieff notably absent from the vote.”
The Council of Canadians had supported C-440. More on that at http://canadians.org/campaignblog/?s=C-440.
The bill proposed to halt the deportation of deserters and permit them to live permanently in Canada. But it also contained broad language to make Canada a haven for conscientious war objectors in general, if they were leaving their military in order to avoid fighting in a war not sanctioned by the United Nations.”
The full article is at http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Parliament+refuses+resisters+remain+Canada/3599563/story.html.
