Suspected Nazi collaborator denied right to appeal
National Post The article by Janice Tibbetts titled "Suspected Nazi collaborator denied right to appeal" in the Dec. 22, 1999 issue of the National Post contains a significant number of inaccuracies with respect to the convoluted ruling of Judge Marc Nadon in the Katriuk case. Judge Nadon concedes that after his arrest for nationalist activity in late 1941, Mr. Katriuk was coerced into "collaborating with the German army" and he never "committed atrocities against civilians in Ukraine". When his unit was shipped to France in 1944, Mr. Katriuk deserted the Germans to join the French partisans and fought with the Allies against the Germans until the end of the war. Because of a death threat from his commanding officer, he deserted the French Foreign Legion in July 1945 and was provided with a false identity by the French partisans. Mr. and Mrs. Katriuk "came to Canada under this false name" in 1951, but reverted to their true names completely openly and upon the advice of Citizenship and Immigration authorities when they obtained their citizenship in 1958.
Further details of the Katriuk case are archived at
Respectfully submitted Suspected Nazi collaborator denied right to appeal Janice Tibbetts OTTAWA - The federal government's effort to rid Canada of suspected Nazi collaborators has been strengthened by a Federal Court of Appeal ruling that found an 80-year-old man has no right to challenge his pending deportation. Justice Barry Strayer rejected a claim from Vladimir Katriuk, a Quebec beekeeper, who argued he should have been able to have his day in court to fight an earlier decision that he obtained his Canadian citizenship under false pretenses. The latest ruling affirms a provision of the Citizenship Act that denies an appeal to people whom the Federal Court finds obtained their citizenship inappropriately. The appeal court rejected the argument that Mr. Katriuk's rights under the Charter of Rights were violated by denying him the right to appeal. Judge Strayer said Mr. Katriuk's right to "life, liberty and security" are not threatened because the Federal Court only makes preliminary findings, not final decisions, when it comes to deportation. It is up to the federal government to initiate proceedings after cabinet decides whether to revoke citizenship. Lynn Lovett of the Justice Department's war crimes unit said the ruling affirms that neither the government nor suspected collaborators can appeal their losses in the Federal Court of Appeal. Federal Court Justice Marc Nadon ruled last January that Mr. Katriuk, who came to Canada under a false name and got his citizenship seven years later, collaborated with the German army in the Second World War and took part in operations that committed atrocities against civilians in Ukraine while he was a member of the Waffen SS. The government's decade-long war crimes probe moved into high gear in 1995 when Allan Rock, former justice minister, announced Ottawa would bring 14 cases against alleged collaborators on the grounds that they lied to immigrate to Canada after the Second World War. The government's record so far includes three wins and three losses. Another three cases are still before the courts, three other elderly men died during the proceedings and two left the country on their own. Deportation proceedings are still under way against the men who lost their cases, including Mr. Katriuk, who lives in Ormstown, south of Montreal. Federal Court Justice Marc Nadon ruled last January that Mr. Katriuk, who came to Canada under a false name and got his citizenship seven years later, collaborated with the German army in the Second World War and took part in operations that committed atrocities against civilians in Ukraine while he was a member of the Waffen SS. **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** |