Deportation splits family

NV refugee claim ends in deportation

By Jessica Barrett, source: North Shore News, December 8, 2009

A young single mother in North Vancouver has been left in a state of shock after her husband was deported to Honduras following denial of his refugee claim.

Cheyenne Gardner, 21, said her husband, Santos Arrazola Acosta, 24, was deported to Honduras Nov. 15, and it could be years until they are reunited.

"I can't even explain how it feels," a tearful Gardner said in an interview. "Every plan that I had in my life was with him and the fact that I maybe have to wait for him for two years -- it's hard for me and my son. I just want him back, that's what's important."

According to Gardner, Arrazola Acosta fled Honduras in late 2007 after being threatened with a gun in a family feud. The man then made his way to Canada via Mexico and the United States, crossing the border into British Columbia on foot on Dec. 17 of that year.

Gardner said Arrazola Acosta applied for refugee status immediately upon entering Canada and was granted a work permit. He had worked steadily in the construction industry throughout his time in Canada, she said.

The couple met in September 2008 and began living together two months later in November.

That same month, Arrazola Acosta learned his refugee claim had been denied and applied to have his case reviewed under the Pre-removal Risk Assessment Program, Gardner said. She said she did not know the reason his application was denied.

Meanwhile, Gardner said, Arrazola Acosta had become part of her family. He was contributing financially to her household as well as taking on a father role with her three-year-old son Evan.

"We're a family. He's helped me in so many ways, my son too looks up to him as a father, he's been crying since Santos left," she said.

The couple married on Oct. 16 of this year and shortly afterward, Gardner said Arrazola Acosta learned his refugee claim had been denied a second time. The couple then began the process of applying to sponsor him as a permanent resident from within Canada and were surprised when a deportation order arrived in November, giving Arrazola Acosta six days' notice.

"We really thought he wouldn't be able to be deported because we were putting in the sponsorship (application)," she said.

When the couple learned there was no law allowing Arrazola Acosta to stay in the country, Gardner said she contacted a lawyer and sought help from her MP, Andrew Saxton, but "They said they couldn't do anything because they didn't have enough time."

A constituency assistant for Saxton did help her file a separate application to sponsor her husband from Honduras and has promised to work to expedite the process, Gardner said. She added she has been told the process could take up to four years.

Johanne Nadeau, a spokeswoman with Citizenship and Immigration Canada, said sponsorship cases are determined on an individual basis. Nadeau could not comment on Arrazola Acosta's case specifically but said, "The CIC strongly believes in the principle of family reunification."

In some cases, Nadeau said, applicants are allowed to return to Canada while their applications are being processed, but the length of time that can take varies.

Gardner is anxious to be reunited with her husband. She said he fears for his safety in Honduras and she has been left to single-handedly care for her son while going to school and working part-time. However she said she is committed to the relationship no matter how long the sponsorship process takes.

"If there was any problem and it took too long, I would try my best to go and see him," she said. "Of course I would wait, he's my husband. I want to be with him no matter what it takes."

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México ofrece residencia temporal a Zelaya
Agencias
Miércoles 09 de diciembre de 2009

Aún no se ha confirmado si el depuesto presidente, junto con su familia, viajarán como refugiados políticos; se prevé su arribo a territorio mexicano en las próximas horas

El gobierno de México invitó a derrocado presidente de Honduras, José Manuel Zelaya para residir temporalmente en el país, por lo que se prevé que arribe en las próximas horas a territorio nacional, aunque hasta el momento no se ha definido si el mandatario tendrá el carácter de asilado político.

Autoridades de la Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores confirmaron que como parte de la posición que fijó el gobierno federal tras el golpe de Estado del 28 de junio, en el que sumó a la condena por este hecho que atenta al sistema democrático, el gobierno federal extendió la visita que incluye a la familia del depuesto presidente.

Las fuentes consultadas indicaron que en las próximas horas se informará sobre las condiciones en las que Zelaya residirá en el país, luego de que el Acuerdo de San José que preveía una votación del Congreso hondureño en el que derivara en la restitución en el cargo, no prosperó ya que los legisladores votaron en contra de esa decisión.

Zelaya quien se encontraba en la embajada de Brasil, en Tegucigalpa, Honduras, de acuerdo con los medios de información locales abandonó la sede diplomática para abordar una aeronave que el gobierno mexicano puso a su disposición.

El gobierno mexicano desde el golpe de Estado, mantuvo el reconocimiento de Rosalinda Bueso Asfuro como la legítima embajadora de Honduras en México, a pesar de los intentos de funcionarios afines al gobierno de facto de tomar la embajada