Friday, December 17, 2010
Chris Kealey, a spokesman for the Canada Border Services Agency, said Thursday night that Omar Ahmed flew to the northern city of Bosaso on the afternoon of Dec. 9 after arriving in Mogadishu that morning.
Ahmed refused to board the scheduled morning flight, Kealey said, but according to the airline, a seat was found on an afternoon flight.
"The airline advised that Mr. Ahmed did board the afternoon flight onward to Bosaso," Kealey said.
Ahmed, 25, has said he was stranded in Somalia's war-torn capital, Mogadishu, when flown there by the border agency last week.
Ahmed said he walked for three days to escape Mogadishu after being told by Somali authorities that he could not fly on to Bosaso. His money, luggage and passport were confiscated by airport customs agents, he said.
Earlier, a CBSA spokesman said Ahmed was responsible for his own travel woes.
"The removal of Mr. Ahmed went according to plan and therefore CBSA officials are not investigating the matter," Esme Bailey, a CBSA spokesperson, said late Wednesday.
"He was provided with air travel arrangements by the CBSA for onward travel, but remained in Mogadishu by his own choice," Bailey said in written answers to questions about the case.
Ahmed's father insisted Thursday that his son did not stop in Mogadishu of his own volition.
"That's a big lie: my son didn't have a choice," Abdi Farah said.
Ahmed is a member of the Darod clan based in the northeast region of Puntland. He would not willingly go to Mogadishu, Farah said, where he doesn't know anyone and has no tribe to protect him.
Farah argued his son should never have landed in Mogadishu. He had asked CBSA officials to fly Ahmed through another East African city with connections to Bosaso, such as Addis Ababa or Djibouti, Farah said.
"They never listened to us," he said. "They're the ones who chose to go through Mogadishu. I blame them for that."
The CBSA's Bailey said Canada "does remove individuals to Somalia, which would include its capital, Mogadishu."
In May, the UN Refugee Agency issued an urgent appeal, asking all governments not to forcibly return people to Somalia due to deteriorating conditions.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade advises against all travel to Somalia. Its travel report, updated in September, contains warnings about Mogadishu, a city it describes as volatile, violent and lawless.
"The security situation in Somalia is highly unstable, particularly in South-Central Somalia and Mogadishu itself," the travel report reads.
Mogadishu has been the scene of protests, civil unrest and violence in response to rising food costs, the report says, as well as guerrilla-style attacks by rebel groups fighting against government and UN forces. "These attacks, most frequently by way of mortars, grenades and improvised explosive devices, are a near-daily occurrence, particularly in the capital, Mogadishu, and civilian casualties are not uncommon."
The travel report also notes that "Mogadishu International Airport is often closed with little or no warning due to fighting."
Omar Ahmed came to Ottawa at the age of nine after spending three years in a Kenyan refugee camp.
As a young man, he joined the Ledbury Banff Crips, an Ottawa street gang, and sold drugs. His criminal record includes convictions for assault, mischief, uttering threats and possession of crack cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
In April, he was jailed as a danger to Canadians and ordered deported. His father said Ahmed agreed to waive legal appeals based on the government's assurance he would be sent to Bosaso.
Ahmed told the Citizen the government failed to live up to its side of the bargain. He is now living with relatives in Galkayo, where he was born. Ahmed said he is seriously ill -- possibly with malaria -- and afraid for his life.
Deportation orders have been issued to 85 Somalis living in Canada, including 10 with serious criminal convictions. All of those removals will be dealt with on a "case-by-case basis," Bailey said.
Source: Ottawa Citizen