AMR 20/C23/2007
27 September 2007
US Refugee Rights Activist Faces Criminal Charges in Canada
Amnesty International is concerned that the Canadian Services Border Agency has detained and may file criminal charges against Janet Hinshaw Thomas. She was detained near Montreal, while assisting Haitian asylum seekers with their entry into Canada.
Janet Hinshaw-Thomas is director of PRIME - Ecumenical Commitment to Refugees, based in Clifton Heights, Pennsylvania. She was taken into custody on Wednesday September 26, 2007, at the St. Bernard de Lacolle border crossing near Montreal. She was detained under Section 117 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. The Act states it is a crime to "organize, induce, aid or abet" the entry into Canada of persons who do not have a visa or passport.
Yet Amnesty International notes that Ms. Hinshaw-Thomas and many other groups and individuals have provided such assistance in similar circumstances openly for several years, in cooperation with CBSA without penalty.
In this case, it appears that Hinshaw-Thomas faces punishment solely on the basis of having provided humanitarian aid to individuals who were seeking asylum in Canada. The right to seek asylum is enshrined in international law.
Amnesty International recognizes the sovereign right of states to control their borders, and does not condone contravening the law. However, the organization stresses that a policy of border controls cannot be made at the expense of the state’s international human rights obligations.
There does not appear to be any allegation that Janet Hinshaw-Thomas helped this group of Haitian asylum seekers circumvent immigration controls. Her activities were solely confined to assisting asylum seekers to exercise their right to seek protection.
Based on the information available, Amnesty International calls for a halt to all legal action against Hinshaw-Thomas. She did not assist the Haitians to evade immigration controls, but was merely enabling them to exercise their right to seek asylum.
For more information:
Beth Berton-Hunter, Media Relations
(416) 363-9933 ext 32