Haitians in Canada relieved by new moratorium on deportations
Former Harper government stopped deporting Haitians after 2010 earthquake but resumed practice last year
Many members of the Haitian community in Canada are breathing a sigh of relief now that the federal government has reinstated a moratorium on deportations to the troubled Caribbean nation.
The federal government stopped deporting Haitians without legal status in Canada more than a decade ago because of political violence, and the moratorium was extended following the devastating earthquake in Haiti in 2010.
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The former federal Conservative government lifted the ban on deportations last year, despite a plea from Haitians facing expulsion for more time to apply for permanent resident status to be granted on humanitarian grounds.
"It was a lot of anxiety," said Marjorie Villefranche, the executive director of Maison d'Haïti, a cultural centre in Montreal. "They were crying, they couldn't sleep."
Villefranche said many Haitians in Canada illegally had deportation dates set for as early as next week and were worried about being sent back.
She credits the new Liberal government with having listened to the pleas of many in the Haitian community.
"They were being very compassionate with the people coming from Syria," said Villefranche. "It's normal to be compassionate with people who are living here and not to send them back in their country."
'If I go back to Haiti, I think they will kill me'
The news comes as a relief to St. Clair St. Laurent, who came to Canada in 2014.
The church pastor said he lived under threat of kidnapping and murder in Haiti from an unnamed group.
"I came to Canada to ask the government to accept me to live, so I can save my life," said St. Laurent.
His application to remain in Canada is now before the Federal Court.
"I don't want to go back to Haiti, because if I go back to Haiti, I think that they will kill me," he said.
The moratorium extends to people from Zimbabwe as well.
In all, about 3,500 people risked expulsion.