Hong Kong’s Snowden refugees appeal to Trudeau ahead of Canadian election

Asylum seekers who helped the American whistle-blower in Hong Kong urge the Canadian prime minister to grant their appeals before an election that could end his time in power

Canada has allowed two of the seven into the country, but five remain in limbo in Hong Kong – splitting a father from his daughter

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Sethumdi, 7, and her brother Dinath, 3, who are in Hong Kong, make a video call to Rodel, who is in Canada, on Kellapatha’s mobile phone. Photo: Nora Tam

Published: 10:30pm, 16 Oct 2019Updated: 2:33am, 17 Oct 2019

The refugees who sheltered American whistle-blower Edward Snowden in Hong Kong and their Canadian lawyers are launching an appeal to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to approve their asylum requests before an election that could spell the end of his time in power.

Canada’s federal elections are to be held on Monday, and with opinion polls showing the two main parties neck and neck, the refugees fear this may be their final chance to influence Trudeau, whose administration has already recognised the requests of some of the group.

Vanessa Rodel, from the Philippines, and her daughter, Keana, 7, flew from Hong Kong to Montreal in March after being recognised as refugees by the Canadian government. But three other adults and two children – all part of the group who helped Snowden back in 2013 in Hong Kong – still remain in the city.

“The others should have been accepted at the same time as Keana and I, and taken on the same flight. I don’t know why that didn’t happen and why the government is taking so long,” Rodel said in a phone interview from Montreal.

Vanessa Rodel, her daughter Keana and lawyer Robert Tibbo after arriving in Toronto in March. Photo: The Canadian Press via AP

A family of four from Sri Lanka – Supun Thilina Kellapatha, his wife Nadeeka Dilrukshi Nonis, and their two children, Sethumdi and Dinath – as well as Ajith Pushpakumara, a former soldier from the same country, remain in limbo in Hong Kong, while waiting for a decision from the Canadian government. Refugee claims were filed in Canada on their behalf almost three years ago.