Syrian-born Ammar Khatib, who is married to a Canadian citizen, received a deportation order for November 15th, 2004. Amnesty International says he faces risk of torture.

How Many Canadian Citizens Need to be Tortured in Syria Before Canada Acknowledges That Syrian Refugees Are at Risk in Their Own Country?

The Case of Ammar Khatib

(This article originally appeared on IMC-Winnipeg: www.winnipeg.indymedia.org ).

By Paul Burrows November 2, 2004

The latest deportation order has arrived. After pursuing various legal avenues over the last few years, Syrian-born Ammar Khatib received a letter at the end of October stating that he must present himself at the Winnipeg International Airport on Monday, November 15th at 9:00 A.M. sharp. Unless there is a groundswell of community support, and a reversal of the deportation order, Ammar will be deported back to Syria, a country he has not seen for almost a quarter century, a country where he fears imprisonment, torture, conscription into the army, or worse. Ammar’s family fled Syria in 1981 when he was a small boy, due in part to the political beliefs and activities of his father, who was involved in the banned Muslim Brotherhood. Not long before (in 1980), Syrian law was formally changed to make membership in the Muslim Brotherhood punishable by death, which precipitated the flight of Ammar’s family. At age four, a false passport was prepared for Ammar, necessary for his escape from the country, and Ammar’s family fled first to Jordan and then to Saudi Arabia, where they lived for many years as expatriates. But it was a stateless and uncertain existence, a life of exile, and despite living there for twenty years, Ammar was not entitled to become a citizen of Saudi Arabia. He was not entitled to simultaneously work and pursue an education like ordinary Saudi citizens, without fear of deportation back to Syria. As Ammar grew older he came to want what everyone wants: a place to call home, free from persecution, the right to an education, and the right to start a family.

BACKGROUND TO THE CASE

While on a travel visa to the United States in late-2000, Ammar decided to come to Canada to seek asylum. In January 2001, he presented himself at the Canadian border, surrendered his passport (admitting at the outset that it was fake), and asked for refugee status. About a year later, while his claim was still being processed, and he attempted to make a life for himself, Ammar met Safiya Thiessen, a Canadian citizen. In December 2002, the two were married, and in early June 2004, Safiya gave birth to a baby girl who they have named Amal (“Hope