Hundreds of former U.S. soldiers seeking asylum in Canada for not fighting in Iraq
from What's Up October 2009
written in collaboration with Gabriella Treasury
There was a time 
where emigrate to America was considered the dream of all. Now that dream has vanished and turned into the nightmare of being an American citizen, or worse yet, an American soldier.
where emigrate to America was considered the dream of all. Now that dream has vanished and turned into the nightmare of being an American citizen, or worse yet, an American soldier. Today almost 220 former U.S. military from Canada tell their amazing experiences. They are called "War Resisters" or "resistance to war and Toronto has earned the epithet" Resisterville ", because most of them are concentrated here, on the Canadian side of Lake Ontario. Many have not yet been revealed for what they are, that the fugitives or refugees of war in Iraq, where they do not believe, but there are few who have asked Canada officially citizenship. Ottawa by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Conservative and a close friend of Washington, responded negatively to every request, even though much of the Canadian population appears to be favorable. Who does not wish to comment on this story are, however, the courts of Toronto that refer the matter to a size not legal, but rather political, concerning the relations between Canada and the United States. The issue goes on between the two countries since the 70s when, to avoid the Vietnam War, fled to the north about 55 thousand American soldiers. At that time one could speak of desertion because the lever was mandatory. Today we volunteered in the U.S. and in many have heard the call to arms by George W. Bush after 11 September. Most of those who fled to Canada are veterans of the first wave of invasion of Iraq, sent home and then called back again when things were not going the right way. Those who saw what the war in Iraq were shocked they preferred, like their fathers in the 70's, run away to the north, at the risk of going against the very strict U.S. court-martial. Even Obama has called the Iraq war a "dumb war" (stupid war) can not do anything to prevent these deserters / conscientious objectors / war refugees go through this review that, at worst, it can also mean two years in prison.
Another major barrier that must pass is called the War Resisters Jason Kennedy, the Minister of Immigration Canada. Always believed that former soldiers are not "genuine refugees or asylum seekers, how they intend to make believe" and "not at all suffer persecution in their countries," he did reject the past year, two proposals to freeze the opposition ' resistant to the expulsion order imposed. The first to suffer the consequences was Robin Long. The young 25 year old living in Canada for three years, arrested July 15, 2008 on charges of desertion, was extradited United States, where the military court sentenced him to 15 months in solitary confinement. However, the most famous story is that of Jo shua
Key. As he wrote in his book The Deserter's Tale (Tale of the deserter), his story is similar to thousands of young American soldiers: he enlisted in the Army after September 11 and in 2003 he was sent to Baghdad because "Saddam Hussein was a monster that went out of the way and needed to deprive him of weapons of mass destruction that were in his hands," Key writes in his book "But they were all lies. We could not find anything. " Key says he committed in Iraq, along with to his platoon, crimes ranging from armed robbery to murder and describes episodes when he saw how horrible the street a number of decapitated bodies and two soldiers kicking a head like a balloon. Key says the U.S. military propaganda called the Iraqis "sand nigger" (sand niggers) and that "they are not men" because "all Muslims are terrorists and all terrorists are Muslims," \u200b\u200breiterating that the only objective is eliminate them. Finally he concludes: "I lost my country and my country has lost me. I might reconsider this position only if the United States sent to trial former President Bush and all the officers responsible that he sent our troops in Iraq. "
that the war waged by their country is just, unjust or stupid, as Obama himself admits, however, these people feel betrayed and, of course, the United States does not want to go back there ever again.
Another major barrier that must pass is called the War Resisters Jason Kennedy, the Minister of Immigration Canada. Always believed that former soldiers are not "genuine refugees or asylum seekers, how they intend to make believe" and "not at all suffer persecution in their countries," he did reject the past year, two proposals to freeze the opposition ' resistant to the expulsion order imposed. The first to suffer the consequences was Robin Long. The young 25 year old living in Canada for three years, arrested July 15, 2008 on charges of desertion, was extradited United States, where the military court sentenced him to 15 months in solitary confinement. However, the most famous story is that of Jo shua
Key. As he wrote in his book The Deserter's Tale (Tale of the deserter), his story is similar to thousands of young American soldiers: he enlisted in the Army after September 11 and in 2003 he was sent to Baghdad because "Saddam Hussein was a monster that went out of the way and needed to deprive him of weapons of mass destruction that were in his hands," Key writes in his book "But they were all lies. We could not find anything. " Key says he committed in Iraq, along with to his platoon, crimes ranging from armed robbery to murder and describes episodes when he saw how horrible the street a number of decapitated bodies and two soldiers kicking a head like a balloon. Key says the U.S. military propaganda called the Iraqis "sand nigger" (sand niggers) and that "they are not men" because "all Muslims are terrorists and all terrorists are Muslims," \u200b\u200breiterating that the only objective is eliminate them. Finally he concludes: "I lost my country and my country has lost me. I might reconsider this position only if the United States sent to trial former President Bush and all the officers responsible that he sent our troops in Iraq. " that the war waged by their country is just, unjust or stupid, as Obama himself admits, however, these people feel betrayed and, of course, the United States does not want to go back there ever again.
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