Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird has announced an Eritrean diplomat has until June 5th to leave Canada.
In a statement released Wednesday (May 29) Baird said: “Canada has taken steps to expel (declare persona non grata) Mr. Semere Ghebremariam O. Micael, consul and head of the Eritrean Consulate General in Toronto, effective immediately. Mr. O. Micael must leave Canada no later than noon Eastern time on June 5, 2013.”
He added: “Today’s actions speak for themselves,” but no specific reason for the expulsion was given. The press release only included this unattributed statement: “The Eritrean government is welcome to propose another candidate to represent it in Canada, but that person must be prepared to play by the rules.”
The decision follows media reports suggesting Semere Ghebremariam O. Micael had been involved in soliciting a “diaspora tax” from Eritreans in Canada recently. CBC News reported eight months ago Canada warned it would not renew his credentials if he kept at it.
A United Nations report last year indicated that state threats and intimidation were commonly used against families in Eritrea to get their relatives living in Canada and other countries to pay up, though now the government sometimes uses a financial middleman.
“As far as I’m concerned it’s a ruse, doing indirectly what the government told them not to do directly,” said David Matas, a human rights lawyer who represents some in the Eritrean community who resent it.
More information:
CBC News – Eritrean diplomat ordered out of Canada after ‘tax’ on ex-pats – here
CBC News – Eritreans in Canada say consul still demands cash from them – here
National Post – Canada expelling Eritrean diplomat for using consulate to shake down citizens for ‘national defence’ – here
Foreign Affairs press release – Canada Moves to Expel Eritrean Diplomat – here
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