Statement made on 16 September 2009 by Senator Mobina Jaffer
Hon. Mobina S.B. Jaffer:
Honourable senators, inscribed within every Canadian passport is the following message from the Government of Canada:
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada requests, in the name of Her Majesty the Queen, all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary.
On May 21 of this year, after a two-week trip spent visiting her ailing mother, Suaad Hagi Mohamud, a Canadian citizen, was stopped by immigration officials in Nairobi while she attempted to board her flight to Canada. The reason given was that she did not resemble her four-year-old passport photo.
The following day, her passport was confiscated by the High Commission of Canada in Nairobi, despite the fact that she produced her driver's licence and fingerprints, among other documents that were asked of her. Ms. Mohamud finally returned to Canada on August 15, after DNA testing confirmed her identity. In the meantime, she had spent time in prison and had been detained by the Kenyan government, at the request of our government.
What is our government doing to assist Ms. Mohamud to recover from this ordeal?
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