[R-G] CODEPINK founder barred from Canada

[Anthony Fenton]

Copyright 2007 MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers
All Rights Reserved
Inside Bay Area (California)

October 22, 2007 Monday

SECTION: SCIENCE AND TECH

LENGTH: 522 words

HEADLINE: CODEPINK founder barred from Canada

BYLINE: By Bill Brand, Staff Writer

BODY:


San Francisco - Here in the United States, Canada has long had a  
reputation as a shelter for American political protesters. But in  
this post 9-1-1 world, with a member of the Conservative Party as  
Canada's prime minister, Canada has apparently had a change of heart,  
says the disgruntled Bay Area co-founder of CODEPINK, a national  
organization opposed to the war in Iraq.

Medea Benjamin says she was headed to Toronto to attend a peace  
conference, along with ret. U.S. Army Col. Ann Wright (retired). They  
were stopped at the Canadian port of entry at Niagara Falls, NY.

"We were called aside for secondary screening and when they came  
back, they had printed out our records from this file called, a NCIC  
(U.S. National Crime Information Center) data base. In my case there  
were three arrests, one for protesting outside the White House, one  
for a protest in Congress and one in New York City when we tried to  
deliver petitions _ from women saying no to war _ to the United  
Nations."

All were non-violent, peaceful protests, Benjamin said.

Col. Wright, a 29-year-veteran of the U.S. Military and the U.S.  
Diplomatic Corps, had a similar record, all for arrests since 2002  
when she resigned her commission to protest the Iraq War, Benjamin said.

She said they were denied entry to Canada and were told to apply at a  
Canadian Consulate for "criminal rehabilitation." The would require a  
waiting period of five years between the last arrest and admission to  
Canada, Benjamin said.

Instead, CODEPINK has gathered 20,000 signatures of Americans across  
the country on petitions asking Canada to change its policy. The  
group intends to present them Tuesday at five Canadian consulates,  
including the one here in San Francisco.

Representatives of the Canadian and U.S. governments have been asked  
for comment, but so far have not returned phone calls.

To test Canada's resolve, Benjamin plans to fly to Ottawa on Thursday  
to speak at the invitation of several members of the Canadian  
parliament.

"This is going to be a real challenge," Benjamin said. "We're flying  
from Washington, D.C. to Ottawa and we may or may not be allowed to  
enter the country."

But the pressure is on. Benjamin said her chief sponsor, Alexa  
McDonough, head of the liberal New Democratic Party and a member of  
Parliament from Nova Scotia, intends to ask Canadian Prime Minister  
Stephen Harper about the country's policy on admitting Benjamin and  
other activists with arrests for protests.Benjamin says she's outraged.

"We are appealing to Canadians not to treat peaceful activists like  
common criminals. I travel all over the world on a regular basis and  
Canada is the first country to use the NCIC to keep out people like  
us," Benjamin said.

She adds she has traveled to Canada many times and has never before  
been refused entry.

CODEPINK was launched in 2002 to protest the war in Iraq. "We thought  
it was a war about oil, it would result in the deaths of lots of  
civilians and soldiers and make us more hated in the world," Benjamin  
said.

"Unfortunately, everything we thought would happen has happened," she  
said.

Contact Staff Writer William Brand at bbrand at bayareanewsgroup.com