MacKay's Response on Celil
I wrote a letter to Peter MacKay quite some time ago regarding the Celil case. Today, a few months after my letter, I received this response:
On behalf of the Honourable Peter G. MacKay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, I am responding to your email of July 22, 2006, co-addressed to Ms. Alexa McDonough, Member of Parliament, in which you express concerns regarding the detention of Mr. Huseyincan Celil. I regret the delay in replying to you.I wish to assure you that officials at Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada are very aware of Mr. Celil's case and have been working tirelessly toward a resolution. Officials are actively continuing their diplomatic efforts and are in regular communication with Mr. Celil's family.
The Consular Affairs Bureau is mandated by the Privacy Act, which prohibits the disclosure of personal information by a government department or agency unless the consent of the individual who is the subject of the information has been obtained. Any personal information cannot be disclosed to unauthorized parties without the explicit written consent of the individual concerned.
As you can appreciate, the Canadian government has a legal obligation to safeguard the privacy of Canadian citizens. We would like to stress, however, that the Government of Canada is pursuing this matter very seriously.
Thank you for writing and taking the time to express your concerns.Sincerely yours,
Janice Hayes
Director
Ministerial Correspondence Division
From what I understand DFA has been quite vocal with the Chinese about their concern for Celil. It's a difficult case as the Chinese refuse to recognize his Canadian citizenship. I do not envy the officers charged with pursuing his case on behalf of DFA.