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I'm Canadian but My Wife's About to Be Deported to Syria

What I would love to see is for the Canadian embassy to simply issue a travel visa so that my relatives and wife can claim refugee status and/or seek asylum there. This way, Canada can at least give them a chance to live instead of them being sent to Syria as we all know about the tragedies that are occurring there and the terrorist activities that are taking place. It's definitely is unethical for me to run away and return to Canada while my wife and relatives are deported to Syria. If Canada allows my relatives to seek asylum in Canada, I will ensure their safety and comfort in Canada and cover all financial costs.
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Masters student, business owner, Canadian citizen

Masters student, business owner, Canadian citizen
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I want to bring my wife and in-laws home to Canada but instead, they are currently under threat of deportation to Syria.

I'm currently in Saudi Arabia and while trying to get a marriage certificate to bring my wife over, Saudi authorities realized she and her parents were living in the country with an expired visa, since of course, they could not return to their home in Syria where the area they lived in has been demolished and conflict rages on. The police nearly deported us all that same day but after much deliberation, they agreed to take us all back to our house with the condition that we exit the Kingdom in a week. So technically, I had until Sept. 8 to leave with my family or else the police come and deport us all to Syria.

What I would love to see is for the Canadian embassy to simply issue a travel visa so that my relatives and wife can claim refugee status and/or seek asylum there. This way, Canada can at least give them a chance to live instead of them being sent to Syria as we all know about the tragedies that are occurring there and the terrorist activities that are taking place. It's definitely unethical for me to run away and return to Canada while my wife and relatives are deported to Syria. If Canada allows my relatives to seek asylum in Canada, I will ensure their safety and comfort in Canada and cover all financial costs.

If this visa is not issued, my wife and in-laws will sent back to Syria where a constant and active conflict is taking place, and where millions have already fled just to survive. As a Canadian citizen, I hope to see my homeland where I was born and raised all my life help me out with this dire situation by simply issuing a travel permit/visa to Canada so that my wife and in-laws have a chance to live in a country where human values are respected.

I am scheduled to start graduate studies and a teaching assistant contract at Wilfred Laurier University this Thursday (Sept. 10) but it seems I am going to have to defer my program to a later date due to this unfortunate situation me and my family have been put into.

As a Canadian citizen, I really hope that Canada helps me bring my wife and in-laws to my homeland.

Editorial note: Mohammed isn't the writer's real name, it has been changed to protect him and his family.

MORE ON HUFFPOST:

Numbers That Show There's Much More To Do To Help Syrian Refugees
45% of Syrians forced out of their homes(01 of08)
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More than 10 million Syrians have been forced out of their homes due to the conflict, becoming either “internally displaced” or fleeing altogether, according to Amnesty International. (credit:Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
7.6 million Syrians are displaced within the country(02 of08)
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The UNHCR’s latest figures show the crisis is getting worse. More than 7.6m Syrians have been displaced within the country by the conflict, fleeing to safer areas. (credit:Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
3.8 million have sought refuge in other countries(03 of08)
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By December 2014, 3.8 million Syrians had fled the country altogether. They sought refuge in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. A sizeable proportion then make the perilous journey to Europe.
These numbers may well have increased since the last count, given the advance of Isis and the continued battle between rebel groups and pro-government forces. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
33 applications supported by the UN accepted by Gulf nations(04 of08)
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The Gulf Cooperation Council's oil-rich states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates accept very few refugees and asylum seekers from Syria.
Since 2011, the UNHCR has supported 63 Syrians with asylum applications in the countries – but just 33 were accepted, despite the UN's support.
Amnesty International has called Gulf states’ contribution “shocking”, the states themselves say they are providing thousands of visitor visas for Syrians, but also protecting against the threat of Islamist extremist attacks. (credit:Buena Vista Images via Getty Images)
5,000 Syrians taken in by Britain since 2011(05 of08)
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Full Fact reports that Britain has granted asylum to just under 5,000 Syrians in the initial decision made on their applications since 2011.
In addition, 216 Syrian refugees have been resettled in the UK.
Resettlement includes transferring refugees from Syria to the UK – whilst a person has to be in a country to claim asylum there. (credit:shutterstock)
0.17% of Syrian refugees offered places to resettle in Europe (asides from Germany)(06 of08)
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Aside from Germany, the other 27 EU nations have pledged just 6,305 places to Syrians to resettle, last year. That’s 0.17% of the number of refugees that have fled Syria.
While EU nations are likely to significantly increase the number of resettlement places this year – Germany still takes a lion’s share of those seeking refuge. (credit:Jean Claude Meignan via Getty Images)
2.2% of Syrian refugees offered places to resettle this year(07 of08)
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Amnesty International says that – by June 2015 – only 2.2% of Syrian refugees have been offered places to resettle by the international community. That’s less than 90,000.
And money is short too. “The UN’s humanitarian appeal for Syrian refugees was only 23% funded as of the 3 June,” it wrote. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
145 countries signed the Refugee Convention(08 of08)
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In 1951, 145 nations ratified the Refugee Convention governing the treatment of those fleeing persecution.
Yet just a fraction of these have offered to help so far. (credit:SuperStock via Getty Images)
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