Queen’s University law professor Sharry Aiken is available to discuss Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's expected announcement today on which countries Canada will be deemed "safe" for the purposes of dealing with refugee claims in Canada.

“This is a very sad day for refugee rights in Canada. While there may be safe people, the very notion that entire countries should be declared ‘safe’ flies in the face of the Refugee Convention and the obligations Canada has pledged to uphold,” says Professor Aiken, an expert on refugee and immigration law and the Associate Dean of the Faculty of Law at Queen’s University.

Please note on Friday Dec. 14, Professor Aiken is available only for phone interviews after noon.

To arrange an interview, please contact communication officers Michael Onesi at 613.533.6000 ext. 77513 or michael.onesi@queensu.ca or Anne Craig at 613-533-2877 or Anne.Craig@queensu.ca at Queen’s University News and Media Services Department in Kingston, Ont., Canada.

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