Question for Canada: Why Do You Accept Draft Dodgers?

[Jim Burnes]

Why would Canada accept the presense of American citizens who choose to evade the draft by fleeing to Canada?

What would be the policy now, this year in harboring such people?

Such parasites are our fair weather citizens, and run to protect themselves. They would be hiding behind your own citizens, who would become their protectors.

Why is this tolerated?

Jim Burnes

[wonderwoman]

I am not aware of any policy that accepts draft dodgers. As you know there is no passport requirement to cross between our 2 countries. I could easily cross the border today and find a way not to come back for awhile, but you guys just don't have the lonnnnnng cold weather we do!

I can't predict what would happen if you had a draft and floods of men and women came over nowadays. I'm not that up-to-date on our refuge laws other then to know they suck.

Maybe Pete would have a better answer as he works more with federal law, I work mainly with provincial law.

[ 03-02-2003, 05:25 PM: Message edited by: wonderwoman ]

[wonderwoman]

I should mention one more thing..... Most of us Canadians, I truly believe, think the same of a draft dodger as you.

[Jim Burnes]

I'm curious as how your citizens view these types of people. Seems to me, now that America has begun so many drastic security measures to thwart terrorism (and its supporters), that the two governments would come to some agreement to bar the entry of American draft dodgers.

Every man that cuts and runs from his draft is in the most literal sense, causing another man to be assigned to take his place.

That's a coward...

Jim Burnes

[tcsd1236]

It is my understanding that Canada has had an agreement with the US since after the VN War that they would no longer harbor draft dodgers. Does the thread starter have some information that would indicate this is not the fact, or is he going off the old Viet Nam activities of draft dodgers?

[wonderwoman]

Thanks tcsd1236, I assumed from Jims opening comments Canada had made some recent comment they were going to take draft dodgers..... whew.... I was praying things couldn't have gone that bad........however, I am now curious about any agreement that may exist..... I just don't have the right law books handy!!!

[PeteBroccolo]

(Tiptoeing into a mine field, which, of course is in and of itself a tricky topic for a Canadian)

I have not heard of any Canadian Federal law or policy of the Canadian Federal Government that U.S. citizens who have come to Canada will be barred from staying here, or becoming citizens, unless they have breached a law that is contained within the extradition treaty between our countries, and I am not aware of Fleeing Compulsory Military Service as being one of the laws codified in that treaty.

I may be wrong on the details of the treaty, but I don't think so. Beyond that, I don't think I can comment.

[Grum K]

Good question Jim,

My understanding of the situation is similar to Pete's and as I am employed by the same organization as Pete, I'll leave my personal comments out.

If a draft dodger entered Canada before they were to report to the draft board, then an offence had not yet been comitted. I would however suspect that most draft dodgers did not declare their true intentions upon entering Canada.

The offence is actually commited on the day the individual does not report, at which point he is already in Canada, and our extradition treaty with the States does not seem to cover avoiding compulsory military service.

Our federal government is currently reviewing our extradition laws and policy, with more information available at www.gc.ca

Grum

[ 03-03-2003, 12:57 AM: Message edited by: Grum K ]

[wonderwoman]

quote:

---

Originally posted by PeteBroccolo:
(Tiptoeing into a mine field, which, of course is in and of itself a tricky topic for a Canadian)

---

You kill me!!

[PeteBroccolo]

Now, if we are talking anyone that had actually made it into one of the USA Armed Forces, then went AWOL, THAT is another story. That IS an offence, and our policy on that has been around for a long time. Cuff, stuff and call the MPs - I get to play and open a file, and none of the fuss and muss, unless G.I. Jane or Joe gets silly.

Grum - good seeing you. I would reveal WW's alias to you, but you know the rules, and I would hate to kill you, being so new and all.

[Jim Burnes]

Thanks for the replies. I've been curious about Canadas image as a refuge for our pond scum since way back, about 1967 or 68. I had been informed by my brothers that a cousin (not Indian), had been drafted, and his immediate response was to run to our first cousins (Lakota) home in the Rose Bud reservation in S.D. He thought he could claim safety there

But those family members, being WW1, WWII, Korea combat vets tossed his dog butt off the reservation boundaries. So he wound up in the hills above Tahlequah, Oklahoma trying to lay low with some old grandma of the Cherokee nation. He failed to see her photos of the family vets from WW1, WWII and Korea on the walls of her home. We don't have a reservation anymore, but he actually thought a weepy, intelligent debate against the oppressive America was going to earn his rest.

Being a Cherokee Grandma, she held him with her gun and called the police (our Grandma's are like that. ).

But he took out the door, and has not been heard of since by us, since that year of 1967/68.

All that is a true story. Kind of interesting.

I'm serious enough though, about this draft dodging haven thing (even if it may never come to a draft), that I'll so some follow up with the Canadian government.

Maybe a few strips of flypaper, so as to catch and retain all the American kids that are too good, too intelligent, too valuable to society to risk their chickenized necks in the military.

Jim Burnes

[Grum K]

Jim

Perhaps a follow up with your government could be a strategy as well. As I understand it, these extradition treaties between countries are often bilateral. I'm sure if it becomes important to the U.S. it will become important to us.

Grum