Changing Status

From Yahoo:
"US soldiers opposed to war now find Canada less hospitable"

When Army Sgt. Patrick Hart decided a decade ago that he would not serve in the war in Iraq, he expected to follow the same path as thousands of American war resisters during the Vietnam era and take refuge across the border. But after five years of wrangling with the Canadian immigration system, he came back to the U.S. — and ended up in a military prison. The country that once welcomed war resisters has developed a much different reputation during the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan: Supporters say no U.S. soldier who has sought legal residence in Canada, either as a refugee or on humanitarian grounds, has been successful. There are an estimated two dozen U.S. military members still waiting out their fate in Canada, and the resisters' movement is seen as nearing a crossroads. With a national election three months away, supporters are hopeful for a Liberal Party victory and more sympathetic stance toward American military exiles, but bracing for the possibility Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper wins re-election. Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau has not committed to letting the resisters stay, but many are buoyed by his family history. It was his father, Pierre Trudeau, who while prime minister during the Vietnam War said Canada should be "a refuge from militarism." Besides Hart, at least three other soldiers who were deported or left Canada have been sent to prison: Pfc. Kim Rivera, a mother of five, was sentenced in 2013 to 10 months; Spc. Clifford Cornell of Mountain Home, Arkansas, received a one-year term in 2009, and Pfc. Robin Long of Boise, Idaho, was sentenced in 2008 to 15 months. Some deserters face court-martial but the majority are discharged on less-than-honorable terms. Army officials said more than 20,000 soldiers have deserted since 2006. Canada's immigration laws have tightened since the Vietnam War, the support campaign said, giving U.S. soldiers few options other than to try for refugee status based on the fear of persecution if made to go home. Government guidance issued to immigration officers in 2010 requires them to consult supervisors on U.S. military cases and spells out that desertion is a crime that may render those who've left the military as criminally inadmissible to Canada. "Military deserters from the United States are not genuine refugees under the internationally accepted meaning of the term," Citizenship and Immigration Canada spokeswoman Nancy Caron said in an emailed statement. "These unfounded claims clog up our system for genuine refugees who are actually fleeing persecution."  It's a strikingly different stance from what Bruce Beyer saw when he found a safe haven in Canada and spent five years there after refusing induction into the Army during the Vietnam War.

 

 

^ Good job Canada! There is a huge difference between the US Military of the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s to that of today's. Back then (until 1973) the US had a Draft that required all men to actively (ie serving) or inactively (ie registering) to serve in the US Military. And during that time period there were several wars (World War 2, Korea and Vietnam.) So American men from the age of 18 to their mid 20s had to deal with being called-up to fight. The only choices they had to them was to either serve or flee. That's the key difference between now and then.. The US moved to an all-volunteer military in 1973 and while men still have to register for the Draft they haven't had to serve in 42  years. How can someone who volunteers to join the US Military later claim that they are against defending their country or war? You can't. That's why Canada has changed its immigration policy towards these deserters - - people who joined-up willingly. They may not agree with a certain operation or war, but they knew they could be sent into combat when they volunteered so that's not an excuse to desert or become a refugee. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/us-soldiers-opposed-war-now-canada-less-hospitable-153458414.html