Hamilton man's wife to be deported to Egypt

By Kaleigh Rogers, CBC News

Posted: Mar 30, 2013 2:58 PM ET

Last Updated: Mar 30, 2013 2:57 PM ET

 

A Hamilton man's wife is set to be deported to Egypt, despite an outpouring of support from the community and government officials like MP David Christopherson.

Thursday morning, officials at the detention centre where his wife, Wafaa Abdou, is being held told Ian Wilkie she will be deported after a pre-removal risk assessment determined there was no danger to her in her home country.

"She's still here and we're confident she'll be here for awhile," Wilkie said Saturday. "We're working with our lawyer. There's still time for us to take action."

The three children of Wafaa Abdou hold her picture. She has been held at a jail in Rexdale, Ont. since mid-January awaiting deportation. (Supplied)

Abdou, Wilkie and their three children came to Canada after they fled Syria's civil war nearly two years ago. Wilkie, a Canadian citizen, tried to sponsor his wife's immigration immediately. They were told to seek refugee status instead, a process which eventually led to a Jan. 14 appointment where Abdou was interrogated and told her claim had been denied.

Two days later, she was deemed to be a flight risk and incarcerated, where she remains now. Wilkie believes his wife's pre-removal risk assessment was expedited, though he doesn't understand why. "Usually they take two to six months to complete, though some came take as long as eight months to a year," he said. "My wife's took place in three weeks."

'This is a woman who has three Canadian children who need her and a Canadian husband who needs her. Is the most reasonable solution really to deport her?'—Ian Wilkie

Their lawyer is pursuing different routes to ensure Abdou stays in the country, but there are no guarantees. Wilkie said his biggest concern are his three children — Fatima, 6 , Yusuf, 8 and Zaynab, 11 — who he said have been devastated by the ordeal.

"My youngest daughter has been really psychologically affected in ways that are really concerning to me, from panic and anxiety attacks to waking up in the middle of the night scared that people are coming to take her away."

He said he can't help but think that his wife is receiving unfair treatment, from her seemingly expedited assessment to having her head scarf removed and family members interrogated throughout the process. He also noted Abdou was detained and declared a flight risk before deportation was even ordered.

"Is that a normal immigration process? Is that what people from Finland or Germany go through?" he asked.

For now, he and his children are spending the holiday weekend with family to prepare for a continued battle to keep their wife and mother at home. He said he's still confident they will succeed and appreciates the continued support from the community and MP Christopherson.

"At the end of the day, we all know this is a woman who has three Canadian children who need her and a Canadian husband who needs her. Is the most reasonable solution really to deport her?"

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