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JODIE EMERY I am Jodie Emery I am here today calling upon Justice Minister Steven Blaney
to please approve the transfer request application of my husband. My husband Marc Emery is currently
incarcerated in Mississippi State where he is serving a five year sentence for selling
seeds through the mail from Canada. The United States government has agreed that Marc is
eligible for transfer to Canada, reviewed his application and they said that he is able
to come home unfortunately I'm just waiting on the Canadian government as well. It is
simply a document that the government has had since 2011 to review Marc's transfer request
but since July this year we have been waiting for the government here to make a decision
on my husband's transfer request. It is very difficult for me I'm bringing a picture here
of my husband and I in prison, I have to travel all the way down to Mississippi simply to
see him and it causes a lot of suffering, expense and hardship for me to have to go
so far to see my husband and I am simply asking the public safety minister Steven Blaney to
approve Marc's transfer request to come home and to recognize that there is enormous public
and political support for Marc's transfer over the years asking for him to please finish
the sentence in Canada. I am honored to be joined by members of the opposition who are
here to represent many of Canadians who feel that Marc Emery should be transferred home
and I'm grateful for their support in advocating a Canadian citizen who has never harmed anyone,
for him to be able to return to his home country of Canada and that the government should recognized
his citizenship and bring him home to me his wife who desperately wants him back at home
close to me. So I would like to ask up Libby Davies honourable member of parliament Libby
Davies to comment on this. LIBBY DAVIES Well thank you very much Jodie
and my name is Libby Davies I am the member of parliament for vancouver east and I've
known Jodie for many years and Marc and first thing I want to say is that Jodie you have
been reMarcable in your courage and your steadfast support of Marc. I've watched you over the
years and just the tremendous work you have done in keeping the campaign alive and bringing
it to the public attention. I totally agree with you there is tremendous public support
to Bring Marc home, you know I was thinking about this issue on my way here and remembering
that it was July 2005 so more than 8 years ago that Marc Emery was arrested by the DEA
in Vancouver I remember the day very well because of particular circumstances and it
is really an incredible story that this Canadian who would never have been charged in Canada
for selling seeds on the Internet was arrested and the fought the whole extradition process,
of course did get extradited and has now received this jail sentence it really is an incredible
story of someone who has really poised no threat. No harm to any Canadian any US citizen
and has had to go through this incredible process now still serving a sentence. I've
written to many, many ministers of justice over the years first of all about the extradition
but now about trying to insure that Marc is returned to Canada to serve his sentence and
I think it is really important that we speak out clearly and say to the public safety minister
today that we want him to consider this case on it's merit and should be putting aside
political ideology and political considerations. I was very distressed to see the comments
from Mr Blaney's spokesperson on Monday who basically took shots at MPS saying "well you
know the opposition party obviously want to continue to make the drug trade a priority
this press conference today is not about the drug trade This press conference today is
about a Canadian citizen who has gone through due process in the states to be returned to
Canada has been approved by the US justice department to be returned to Canada so this
issue is about whether or not we have a minister of public safety who will be responsible and
look at this application not delay it and delay it until it is too late but look at
this application and to make a determination on whether or not Mr Emery meets the criteria
which we believe he does eminently therefore should be returned to Canada so he can be
close to family his wife his community to serve out his sentence. It is that straight
forward in terms of the issue that we are presenting today, I am very happy to be here,
I would also like to say that the NDP public safety critic Randal garrison couldn't be
here today he is in Toronto but he also very much supports Jodie and this application to
the Canadian minister. So we want to say to Mr Blaney put aside the politics do the right
thing allow Marc Emery to come home you will be well supported by Canadians if you make
that decision. Thank you. WAYNE EASTER: I am Wayne Easter I am the member
of parliament for malpeque for the liberal party of Canada and public safety critic for
the party and I too want to congratulate Jodie on her campaign to bring Marc home it is the
right thing to do. I am going to approach it a little bit of a different angle than
Libby did I'm a former solicitor general which is now called the minister of public safety
and I've had considerable experience with the international transfer of offenders act
in fact I have signed quite a number of transfers when I was solicitor general I think it is
important to mention here what was the purpose of that act, an agreements that is signed
with other countries to allow for transfer of offenders between those countries and in
this case it's the US. Simply put if there is mutual agreement between the two countries
that would allow the prisoner the offender to be transfer closer to home and when they
believe in a rehabilitative system to you believe in not punishing the family of the
offender who is involved and that makes a whole lot of sense. To bring the person that
has been charged the offender closer to home so that they can be with their family so that
the family isn't suffering. They can't see in this case their husband. That is important
to the individual in terms of getting on with life when they get out of prison, you know
until Vic Toews Came along as minister it was almost standard procedure for a minister
of public safety or a solicitor general to sign those transfers when there was agreement
between the two parties involved and I think we ought to make a determination if the prison
system is all about vindictiveness punishment or if it is about rehabilitation and not punishing
the other family members who were not the ones in prison. As Jodie said Marc's transfer
has been approved by the United States department of justice Marc's sentencing judge and prosecutor
both support taht transfer the only stumbling block is this government there is 2 key criteria
in terms of allowing a prisoners to come back to Canada and serve out the remainder of their
sentence in this country and that really is that the individual doesn't poise a threat
to Canada and that he is not a member of organized crime. Marc Emery clearly fits the criteria,
he has the support on the American side and it only makes sense for this government to
allow that transfer to occur so he can serve out the remainder of his sentence in his own
country. What's Canadian citizenship mean? That is one of the other key questions here,
this is a Canadian citizen who has served a lot of his time in the united states and
I believe the government of Canada has an obligation to sign this transfer and allow
him to come back to Canada. Last point would be this Steven Blaney is a new minster of
public safety Steven Blaney this minister has the opportunity to turn the page and say
that this isn't all about political ideology vindictiveness and punishment Marc Emery has
served a lot of his time in the united states and all it takes for him to do that and be
closer to his family is the ministers signature on a document that is all we are asking this
minster to do. Thank you very much. ELIZABETH MAY if I can I just want to add
words of support as member of parliament from Saanich-Gulf for the green party it is very
clear that Marc Emery who has been put in a prison in Mississippi think of that with
his wife living in Vancouver the distance is extraordinary and the costs to the family
is huge FRENCH (I'll add a bit of French because it
is clear that Mr. Blaney, now , as the new Minister has the opportunity to do something
different than the former Minister Vic Toews. We are a group of people here , we require
Mr. Blaney to sign the license Mark Emery so he could finish his sentence in Canada.
This is not a request to ignore the crime, but it is clear that this is a political rather
than criminal offense really , but that's another debate. It is now clear that the Federal
Government of the United States is consistent with the transfer of Mark Emery in Canada
at the end of his sentence so that it is closer to his wife, and also his family. It is clear
that this is a matter of justice and everyone here calls , Mr. Blaney asked to sign forms
and allow Mr. Emery, someone who makes threats to anyone, to return to Canada . It is a matter
of justice.) Q&A Jodie Emery I guess um you said the the
request has been in since 2011 have you heard anything at all from public safety with regards
to that whether it was under Toews or with the new minister and just quickly also how
long does Emery have left in his sentence? JODIE EMERY Well, I haven't heard anything
back from the minister myself except for receiving correspondence from supporters who received
letters acknowledging the receipt of the letter but basically saying nothing I've been tweeting
at the minister twitter is very popular and useful so he's quite aware of what I'm requesting
but I have not received any answers at all. Before Marc applied in 2011 with the united
states government that initially rejected his application and he did have to wait two
years but since the approval of the United States Department of Justice in July the Canadian
government has been able to sign off there is no deadline for it it simply requires a
bit of pressure I imagine but I haven't received any response whatsoever and I do hope that
I will receive one Marc is doing a five-year sentence he was facing thirty years to life
in accepted a five-year plea deal which began in 2010 his early release for good behavior
is eighty-five percent of the sentence and that's july 9th 2014 so Marc doesn't have
too long to go in the remainder of his sentence but it would make sense to us for him to come
home and finish his sentence closer to home on Canadian soil
Q and also the follow-up some of the MPs mention that they think that the fact that its sort
of been unanswered may be politically motivated I'm wondering what you make those comments
whether you agree? JODIE EMERY I think it's fair to say that
my husband Marc Emery is very high profile he is well recognized as a marijuana activist
and advocate for legalization he has always used peaceful non-violent means to promote
that idea but this government has taken a very firm stance against marijuana legalization
even though the country next to us is legalizing it right up against our border I believe that
this government isn't interested in transferring Marc and they're not interested many transfer
applications and I hope that they wouldn't make it political but unfortunately as pointed
out the answer they've given is about the drug trade and that's not what this is about
it all it's about a Canadian citizen under the treaty seeking to be brought home so it
may be political this government tends to take a firm stand against marijuana legalization
and I believe that might have a role to play but I sure hope it doesn't
END