Tearful Family Ordered Back to Costa Rica
Alexandra Shimo, The Globe and Mail

A Costa Rican family whose controversial case shaped government protocol in the arrests of illegal immigrants lost their legal fight to stay in Canada yesterday. The Federal Court of Canada has ruled the Lizano-Sossa family must leave the country by Sunday.

On hearing the news, several family members began to cry, expressing their astonishment and distress. In an interview with The Globe and Mail, Gerald Lizano-Sossa said Canada had given him a safe and stable place to raise his family and he did not want to leave. "We are very sad," said Mr. Lizano-Sossa, a father of three who has worked in construction since 2000. "We have our life here now. The worse thing is that we have to leave on Canada Day."

The family bought their airplane tickets for Saturday morning, but are still hoping Minister of Immigration Monte Solberg will intervene on humane and compassionate grounds. Their lawyer, Juan Carranza, has contacted the minister, asking him to make an exception in this case.

"That is our only chance," said Kimberly, 15, who often speaks on behalf of the family. "We don't want to go back to Costa Rica. We don't have a house there. We don't have anything there."

The case sparked a controversy when Canadian Border Service agents picked up Francella Lizano-Sossa and her toddler, and then arrested her two oldest children, Kimberly and Gerald, 14, at their Toronto school.

The next day, CSB agents also went to the school of another Costa Rican family and arrested two children, Lisbeth and Hacel Serdas, and used them as bait to lure the parents to turn themselves in.

The two incidents caused a public outcry, and prompted the Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness to launch an investigation into the correct protocol on arresting the children of immigrant parents. The final report recommended that CBS agents should not target students on school property, except at the request of a parent or legal guardian, in serious criminal cases, or in matters of national security.

To plead the Lizano-Sossas' case, friends and family have organized campaign phoning and faxing to Mr. Solberg's office.

A lead organizer of the campaign, Sima Zerehi, spokesperson for No One Is Illegal, said they had mobilized support from trade-union groups, immigrant and refugee networks and human-rights organizations.

Thirty opposition MPs have also signed a letter to Mr. Solberg petitioning for the Lizano-Sossa family.

"They [the family] have demonstrated that they are hard working people who have chosen this wonderful country to give their family a better life," wrote MPs, including Liberals Borys Wrzesnewskyj and Mario Silva, New Democrat Olivia Chow and Bloc Québécois immigration critic Meili Faille.

"I would therefore formally intervene and stay the deportation order to Costa Rica, issue a Ministerial permit authorizing the processing of a permanent residence application for the entire family."

Lesley Harmer, a spokeswoman for Mr. Solberg, said she could not comment on a specific case.