The COVID-19 crisis has left thousands of Canadians stranded in other countries.
Subject to travel bans and even martial law restrictions in those foreign lands, with most international flights grounded, people attempting to return to Canada are becoming concerned for their own safety and have been reaching out to politicians for help.
Todd Doherty is doing what he can to bring them home. The MP for Cariboo-Prince George is leaning on his network of international contacts developed over two decades as an airport executive and his work abroad on trade missions under the former Conservative government to help make that happen.
Doherty has spent much of the past month on his phone using his consular contacts to coordinate with the government’s Global Affairs staff and federal officials of all political stripes to work together to clear the way for repatriation. The calls come in at all hours of the day, usually from family members trying to clear the hurdles of the global pandemic to get their loved ones back.
“We’ve had constituents that have been in Peru or Guatemala or Cambodia or Thailand or India and stuck on the cruise ships that are not allowed or restricted for docking and are literally floating without a home for a long period of time,” said Doherty.
“We’ve had constituents that are in countries that are in 100 per cent lockdown, essentially martial law, and if you’re a foreigner it’s become very dangerous for them to be there because they’re seen as the carriers of the virus.”
Within his own riding, Doherty says there are hundreds of constituents trying to make it back home. On Friday, Doherty received a text message from a woman in Prince George whose 80-year-old mother just made it back from India.
He was relieved last week to learn a woman and her husband traveling in Peru were able to make it back to their home in Williams Lake. In her text to Doherty, the woman said the situation in Peru was becoming more volatile with people struggling with a nationwide lockdown which limited their ability to find the necessities of life.
“It was a very frightening potential that we were facing to be thousands of miles away from family and loved ones during such uncertain times was one of my worst fears,” said the woman. “Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. My family, friends and also my mother are grateful to you for your personal response and the help you provided.
“Initially my greatest fears of the situation included the state of the population would inevitably be pushed with time. Hunger and desperation would no doubt lead to raping and pillaging of gringos, who would be particularly vulnerable to this. Global Affairs has already announced the changing climate in Peru and the rise of dangerous crimes. With this said, there are still some of our Canadian brothers and sisters in Peru, some are being contained in hotels unable to leave. My heart goes out to these people because I know firsthand how scary it is and each person has a completely different capacity to cope.”
Some of the people Doherty is in contact with have run low on medications and are finding it hard to get their prescriptions filled. People from Toronto with family members stuck in Guyana reached out to Doherty when they heard he has diplomatic connections there.
Doherty was appointed Shadow Minister for Transport in November and has tapped his international connections to answer questions about air travel and what Canadians can expect if they do manage to get on flights back to the country.
“The flight situation is pretty difficult in terms of airspace, which is essentially closed,” he said. “When you have people who have to travel a considerable distance from whatever village they’re in to where the airports are, especially if they’re a foreigner, it’s pretty stressful.”
Doherty says he also worries for the safety of consular staff and diplomats who are also encountering difficulties with their own families dealing with the stresses brought on by the pandemic.
At home, the COVID-19 crisis has necessitated a spirit of cooperation among all levels of government across party lines to find solutions that are in the best interests of Canadians. On Saturday, a small sitting of the House of Commons approved a $73-billion wage subsidy program.
“Minister (of Foreign Affairs François-Philippe) Champagne has been very responsive, as has his parliamentary secretary,” said Doherty. “They have the confidence that when I bring something to them the situation is not exaggerated in any event. That is one thing that’s been pretty heartening this whole case is we can just reach across the aisle and say, ‘I need you to look into this.’
“Every MP, all 338, are doing what we can, working collaboratively to bring Canadians home and to make sure we’re building a robust system to get the financial relief needed.”
