OTTAWA — Responding to what it called the “highly unpredictable” and “deteriorating” situation in Egypt, the federal government announced Sunday it will start flying Canadians out of the country as early as Monday — a move that comes amid criticism over the government’s efforts to help stranded Canadians.
Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon announced details of the flights Sunday evening in Ottawa, on the heels of similar action taken earlier in the day by the United States and other countries.
“We don’t want to put Canadians in a precarious situation,” Cannon said. “Rather than bettering itself, the situation seems to be deteriorating from the reports that we are receiving. And, therefore, our primary concern, of course, is the safety and security of Canadians”.
No Canadians have been hurt or injured as a result of the protests, Cannon said.
He said Canadians would be flown to either Paris, London or Frankfurt — where a greater amount of consular staff would be able to assist them — but would have to sign a contract promising to reimburse the government for the cost of their flight out of Egypt.
“Canadian citizens who travel on arranged transport will be expected to make their own onward travel plans from these locations,” he said.
Violent protests swept through the streets of Egypt for a sixth day Sunday, and Canadians trapped in the country say they have been wondering what their government has been doing to help them.
There are believed to be about 6,500 Canadians in Egypt. Cannon said plans were in the works to evacuate as many as 800 as early as Monday. The government didn’t have an immediate figure on the number of Canadians requesting to leave.
Cannon urged those seeking charter flights to contact the Canadian Embassy in Cairo or the emergency operations centre in Ottawa.
“We continue to call on the Egyptian government to state its commitment to strengthening democracy, consultation, dialogue and co-operation,” Cannon said. “We urge the Egyptian government to accelerate the pace of democratic and economic reforms and listen to the aspirations of the Egyptian people.”
During the riots, the death toll has climbed to more than 100 people, as Egyptians continue to call for democratic and economic reforms, as well as the ouster of embattled President Hosni Mubarak.
Marie-Claude Vigneault said she had been trying to reach Canadian Embassy officials for six days since deadly protests began last week.
She said local police have been nowhere in sight. And while her friends from other countries — such as France, Mexico and the United Kingdom — have all been in touch with local consular officials, Vigneault said she had not received a single response from the Canadian Embassy or government officials.
“I almost feel ashamed to be Canadian,” said Vigneault, who moved to Egypt from Quebec City eight years ago. “We were not even able to contact Ottawa. The emergency number doesn’t work”.
The Department of Foreign Affairs has urged Canadians in Egypt to “consider leaving if their presence is not necessary.” The United States and Iraq have also told their citizens to evacuate and offered flights to take them home to safety.
Vigneault said that when she called the embassy, she was put on hold and eventually transferred to Ottawa with no response. After waiting on hold for 20 minutes, she said she ran out of credit to make calls, spending more than $100 with no one to speak to on the other end of the line.
Dan McTeague, the Liberal party’s critic for consular affairs, said the government’s “knee-jerk” reaction to helping Canadians in Egypt has been “extremely concerning” and showed it was out of touch with international events.
“The Conservatives saw the U.S and their response and what other countries were doing and finally got onto the ball,” he said. “The government has been shamed and embarrassed into reacting”.
Delays in putting an evacuation plan in place and not taking the lead could be placing Canadians’ lives “in jeopardy,” he said.
He said the government had learned nothing from previous evacuation efforts and that the measures announced Sunday “should have been done days ago” instead of leaving Canadians to fend for themselves for days.
NDP foreign affairs critic Paul Dewar agreed Canada’s announcement came “a bit late” and described evacuation arrangements as “awkward”.
“What the government should have done is said, ‘We’ll make arrangements to get you out if you need help,’ and that’s all they need to worry about. Instead it’s ‘here’s the number to call and by the way you have to sign a contract that you’re going to pay to get out. It doesn’t sound very welcoming”.
While Vigneault and her mother wait for news from Canadian officials in an apartment in the suburban neighbourhood of Maadi, south of downtown Cairo, she’s envious of one of her friends from France who was contacted by the French consular officials who explained the situation and how to prepare for a possible evacuation.
Vigneault said she has heard gunshots and machine guns firing in recent days around her block and has tried to avoid going outside. But she said the situation has stabilized over the past day, mainly because the locals are now carrying guns, knives or blunt objects to protect themselves.
Getting food is also a struggle. She was able to buy some groceries at the beginning of the weekend and has supplies to last her for about two weeks but notes many basic items are becoming very expensive.
“There’s almost nothing left in the grocery store,” she said.
Early on Sunday evening, she said a friend of hers from Quebec had finally heard from Canadian Foreign Affairs officials who said they were trying to reach her but got no response on her phone. Global News
