Photo credit: Citynews Montreal
An international student from the Democratic Republic of Congo says she was blocked from returning to Montreal because of Ebola-related travel restrictions – despite the fact she hasn’t visited her home country in almost a year.
The Associated Press reports that Merdie Sanga was vacating in France when she received a letter from Canada’s immigration Department saying it was suspending travel documents for foreign nationals from Congo due to concerns over Ebola.
To her surprise, she was not allowed to board her Air France flight on Sunday after airline workers made a call to officials at Montreal’s airport.
She is one of several members of Montreal’s Congolese community who say the new restrictions have upended their plans in expensive and sometimes heartbreaking ways.
Last week, the Canadian government announced a 90-day suspension of a variety of immigration and travel documents, such as resident visas and electronic travel authorizations, for people in Congo, South Sudan and Uganda. More than 24,000 travel documents could be suspended, including more than 12,600 belonging to Congo residents.
The federal government said it is taking these actions “out of an abundance of caution” as health-care workers in Africa struggle to contain an outbreak of Bundibugyo virus, a rare form of Ebola. Authorities have reported 134 confirmed cases in Congo and neighbouring Uganda, including 18 confirmed deaths as of May 29.
Sanga says she has submitted paperworks to the government showing why she falls outside the scope of the measures, and is hopeful she’ll be allowed to return to Montreal soon. She understands that the restrictions are needed to protect the population from Ebola. “However, we need to look at the specific cases because the virus, the epidemic, is not linked to nationality,” she said.
Another Montrealer affected by the travel restrictions is musician Kizaba, who says he spent $2,500 on a plane ticket to Kinshasa for his brother’s wedding, which he can no longer attend.
While Kizaba iis a Canadian citizen, he can’t attend the event because of the Canadian government’s requirement that he should be in isolation for 21 days upon his return. He says it’s something that’s impossible for a musician during the busy summer concert and festival season.
