[1] Mr. Prince Philip Aseervatham Legori has asked me to stay the execution of an order requiring him to leave Canada for his native Sri Lanka on March 4, 2004. He argues that an assessment of the risk he would face on his return to Sri Lanka was faulty. The officer who conducted that assessment, according to Mr. Legori, did not take adequate account of evidence showing that recent events in Sri Lanka expose him, as a Tamil male, to a high risk of mistreatment.
[2] Mr. Legori argues that the question whether the officer's approach to the evidence was proper amounts to a serious issue to be tried. Further, he submits that returning him to Sri Lanka now would expose him to irreparable harm. Those arguments, along with his assertion that the balance of convenience lies in permitting him to stay in Canada while pursuing his legal remedies here, he says, satisfy the three-part test for a stay of execution.
[3] I am not satisfied that Mr. Legori has presented a serious issue or evidence of irreparable harm. Therefore, I must dismiss this motion.
[4] Mr. Legori suggests that the officer's decision, dated January 20, 2004, should have included references to evidence of recent developments in Sri Lanka. The documents referred to by the officer were from 2002 and 2003.
[5] In any case, the officer had clearly considered all of the submissions made to him and specifically addressed the situation in Sri Lanka after the breakdown of peace talks in the spring of 2003. I cannot see any serious issue arising from the officer's treatment of that evidence.
[6] As for irreparable harm, Mr. Legori's submission is speculative. As he states in his affidavit, he fears that "the latest national political crisis will plunge the country into chaos and re-ignite ethnic tensions and the war between the State and LTTE." If that were to transpire, Mr. Legori could, as a Tamil male, be exposed to a heightened risk of personal harm. But this is not the current situation in Sri Lanka. True, recent events are worrisome; they do not appear, however, to give risk to a present and tangible risk to Mr. Legori. Even considering the most up-to-date evidence, I am not satisfied that Mr. Legori's return to Sri Lanka would expose him to irreparable harm. Accordingly, this motion is dismissed.
ORDER
THIS COURT ORDERS that this motion is dismissed.
"James W. O'Reilly"
J.F.C.
FEDERAL COURT
Names of Counsel and Solicitors of Record
DOCKET: IMM-1304-04
STYLE OF CAUSE: PRINCE PHILIP ASEERVATHAM LEGORI
Applicant
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
Respondent
PLACE OF HEARING: TORONTO, ONTARIO
DATE OF HEARING: MARCH 1, 2004
REASONS FOR ORDER
AND ORDER BY: O'REILLY, J.
DATED: MARCH 3, 2004
APPEARANCES BY:
Mr. Robert I. Blanshay
FOR THE APPLICANT
Ms. Marina Stefanovic
FOR THE RESPONDENT
SOLICITORS OF RECORD:
Robert I. Blanshay
Toronto, Ontario
FOR THE APPLICANT
Morris Rosenberg
Deputy Attorney General of Canada
Toronto, Ontario
FOR THE RESPONDENT
FEDERAL COURT
Date: 20040303
Docket: IMM-1304-04
BETWEEN:
PRINCE PHILIP ASEERVATHAM LEGORI
Applicant
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
Respondent
REASONS FOR ORDER
AND ORDER
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