Canada Expels US Woman Deserter Kimberly Rivera, a mother of three
http://www.truthout.org/011109B
Canada has ordered the deportation of the first woman US soldier to
have sought asylum in the country to avoid being deployed to Iraq.
Kimberly Rivera, a mother of three, had requested permission to
remain in Canada on humanitarian grounds but her appeal was rejected.
She could face up to five years in prison when she returns to the
US.
Some 200 deserters from the US military are believed to have fled
to Canada, some living incognito.
Mrs Rivera served in Iraq in 2006 but deserted a year later after
refusing to be redeployed.
The War Resisters Supporters Campaign, who are backing Mrs
Rivera,
said her experience in Iraq was "a huge awakening" which convinced
her
that "the war was immoral and that she could not participate in it".
Mrs Rivera and her family have been told they must leave Canada
by
the end of January unless the court order is reversed.
Last year, the Canadian parliament passed a non-binding motion
granting asylum to deserters from the Iraq war.
But correspondents say the governing Conservatives opposed the
motion, not willing to risk upsetting Washington over the issue.
So far Canada has deported only one US deserter, Robin Long. He
was sentenced to 15 months in prison on his return.
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