Please dedicate 2 minutes on Tuesday (or whenever works for you) to make three simple phone calls and send an email (scripts below) to evacuate two Palestinian mothers from Gaza who were forcibly separated at the border from their husbands and children by the Canadian government almost 8 months ago, in clear violation of its own emergency measures program (full background at https://www.change.org/p/these-kids-need-their-moms-canada-must-immediately-evacuate-doaa-and-nariman-from-gaza )
In addition, these calls focus on all 3,700 visa applicants in Gaza – now waiting over 22 months for Canadian visas – who must be issued visas so they can join their loved ones in Canada, and all 2,500+ still stranded in Egypt for up to 22 months must have their visas approved immediately too.
Over 350 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli bombs since the so-called ceasefire was signed. Most continue to be malnourished and suffer from exposure to the elements, unable to find suitable shelter, medical care, education, and social supports.
If you would be interested in writing an email, a template is available below
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CALL INSTRUCTIONS:
Minister of Immigration Lena Metlege Diab: 613-996-3085
Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand: 613-995-4014
Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree: 613-992-1351
Please call using this text as a guideline and leave a message if you do not speak directly with a person. PLEASE be polite, as any negative interactions will harm the families. If they say this is the wrong office, politely tell them this IS the office where feedback needs to be heard and ask them to pass it on.
Hi, my name is XXX and I’m calling from XXX. Despite the singing of a ceasefire, over 350 Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks. I object to Canada’s forcible separation of families and the lethally slow pace of visa processing. Specifically, I am calling on you to immediately approve for exit mothers Doaa Nashwan as well as Nariman Abu Amra and her three children. Too many people have been killed waiting for their Canadian visas to be processed. You also need to immediately issues visas to and evacuate all 3,700 applicants still stuck in Gaza after 22 months and approve the visas for 2,500 people stranded in Egypt. It’s an emergency program and needs to be operated on an urgent, emergency basis. Thank you
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Write a letter:
Please cut and paste the letter below (and edit as you see fit to personalize the letter and subject matter, and add your MP’s email in the CC section)
For Subject Line: Urgently Evacuate Doaa Nashwan, Nariman Abu Amra and all Visa Applicants to come to Canada from Gaza
To: gary.anand@parl.gc.ca, lenametlege.diab@parl.gc.ca, Anita.Anand@parl.gc.ca
CC: Mark.carney@parl.gc.ca; ziad.aboultaif@parl.gc.ca; David.angell@pco-bcp.gc.ca; Nisara.Jiwani@pco-bcp.gc.ca; ps.ministerofpublicsafety-ministredelasecuritepublique.sp@canada.ca; tasc@web.ca; IRCC.Minister-Ministre.IRCC@cic.gc.ca; Minister@cic.gc.ca; Scott.Harris@cic.gc.ca; Harpreet.Kochhar@cic.gc.ca; pm@pm.gc.ca; Tricia.Geddes@ps-sp.gc.ca; minister@ps-sp.gc.ca; Daniel.Mills@ps-sp.gc.ca; Salma.Zahid@parl.gc.ca; Jenna.Sudds@parl.gc.ca; Iqra.Khalid@parl.gc.ca; nathaniel.erskine-smith@parl.gc.ca
Dear Ministers Diab, Anand, and Anandasangaree,
Canada must stop playing Russian Roulette with the lives of Palestinians who applied to come to Canada in January 2024 and immediately evacuate Doaa Nashwan, Nariman Abu Amra (and her three children, Mohammed, Manar, and Ahmed), as well as all other families who, despite applying for visas almost two years ago, remain been cruelly separated as Israeli bombs and starvation face them down in Gaza.
For those in Gaza, life has not improved at all since the signing of the ceasefire, which is violated daily. Indeed, as of November 23, almost 350 Palestinians have been killed in the daily Israeli bombardments of the Gaza Strip despite the ceasefire agreement, while others continue to suffer the ill effects of hunger, homelessness, and exposure to disease.
Most European countries regularly assist in the evacuation of Palestinians from Gaza, even when they do not have family abroad.
Scores of loved ones of Canadian Palestinians have been killed waiting for visa approvals from Ottawa.
It is hard to imagine the horror endured by these families since they were separated almost eight months ago.
These two families were forcibly separated at the Karem Abu Salem evacuation point in early April because of a heartless paperwork technicality that violates Canada’s own Gaza Temporary Residence Visa program. As you know, that program does NOT require that biometrics (fingerprints and photo) be completed as a condition of leaving Gaza to come to Canada. It even says so on the program website. And yet this excuse that Canada is now using to not submit their names for evacuation – lack of biometrics – means that they had the impossible Sophie’s Choice of making last minute decisions about who will live and who will face further risk of immediate or slightly longer death under conditions the International Court of Justice has called a plausible case of genocide. Countless other families face the same impossible choice.
Canada is condemning to death people like Doaa, Nariman, and Mohammed, Manar and Ahmed, who are unable to provide what the government has already acknowledged since day one was something they could not provide from within Gaza. When Canada keeps moving the goalposts, what are families seeking to escape a genocide to do?
Why is Canada not waiving the wrongfully imposed biometrics requirement here like it did with the Afghanistan and Ukraine programs?
I am calling on you to immediately place these names on the evacuation lists and ensure they are reunited with their loved ones in Canada as soon as possible.
In addition, Canada must end its lethally slow pace for processing Palestinian applications. This means immediate issuance of visas to all remaining 3,700 still in Gaza after 22 months of waiting, and also approve visas for the 2,500 stranded applicants in Egypt, also waiting upwards of 22 months.
Other countries have evacuated the loved ones of their nationals. Indeed, over 6,000 have been reportedly evacuated by other countries this year alone. Why not Canada?
I am tired of hearing our government say the problem lies elsewhere when as recently as mid-September, the Israeli border authority publicly declared: "We would like to clarify: many embassies around the world are reaching out on your behalf, requesting to receive you in their countries. We are not restricting departures, and we will continue coordinating additional departures based on requests from embassies. Departures will be carried out only upon receiving an official request from the receiving country’s embassy.”
Canada has a history of such life-threatening discriminatory behaviour during a genocide. A shameful chapter of our history is called None is Too Many, when Jews were denied entry for many of the same xenophobic reasons that Palestinians face today.
As one of over 10,000 people who’ve signed a petition in support of these families, I call on you to immediately reunite these families and devote the resources needed to immediately process all remaining applications and evacuate everyone with loved ones in Canada.
Thank you
NAME
CITY/TOWN
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