Cannon Appeals For Canadians’ Safety In Egypt

Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon sought assurances from his Egyptian counterpart on Wednesday that Canadians in the strife-torn country will receive all the help they need to leave.

Cannon delivered that request in a telephone call to Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit, during which he repeated Canada’s calls for an orderly transition to economic and democratic reform.

“I reiterated to him Canada’s position,” said Cannon.

Cannon spoke to Gheit after the outbreak of violence in Cairo between supporters and opponents of President Hosni Mubarak that left at least one dead and 600 injured.

Among those injured in Wednesday’s violence was a Canadian news cameraman, who was beaten by an angry mob.

Sylvain Castonguay, of the CBC’s French all-news network, was punched in the face then swarmed and beaten by dozens of people.

Cannon said he was assured by Gheit that Canadians in Egypt will be allowed to leave.

“He gave me all the assurances that the government of Egypt would give us the assistance that we require,” said Cannon.

Canadians in Alexandria, Egypt’s second-largest city along the Mediterranean Sea, were evacuated in a flight Wednesday, said Cannon, who did not provide additional details about the passengers.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Twitter that 80 more Canadians left Cairo on Wednesday on another flight.

The government chartered several planes for the evacuation, but demand for seats was low prior to the outbreak of violence.

Three previous flights from Cairo carried fewer than 400 Canadian passengers, while some seats were filled with American, British, Australian and other nationals.

A statement issued by Cannon early Thursday said Canadians who wish to leave Egypt on a chartered flight should immediately get to the airport “as soon as possible.”

“We strongly urge all Canadians to leave Egypt,” the statement added.

Cannon earlier stated that the services “will be provided to Canadians as long as there’s a need.”

“We continue to phone back those Canadians that have given their phone numbers to us. We are able to monitor that. That is the reason why we will have people on board that plane.”

Cannon says the government has been “preoccupied” with the Cairo street clashes.

But he would not say whether Mubarak, Egypt’s leader for three decades, should step down.

“The president has indicated he will not run again,” Cannon said. “It’s ultimately up to the Egyptians themselves to make the decisions that need to be made.”

Cannon also refused to offer any assessment of who was responsible for the Wednesday’s outbreak of violence.

The incident involving the CBC cameraman occurred amid an increasingly bloody standoff in Egypt, where Mubarak’s supporters emerged Wednesday to fight back against the anti-government uprising.

An Egyptian-Canadian woman, who decided to remain in the country, said she witnessed massive carnage in Cairo’s downtown Wednesday.

“It’s pretty horrific. … I am afraid of what’s going to happen there tonight,” Mona Rabie said by telephone from Cairo after visiting a make-shift hospital that was treating the injured in the heart of the city.

Her roommates have left Cairo fearing for their safety, but Rabie said she would be betraying her own beliefs if she followed suit.

“Mubarak speaks to America and says the Muslim Brotherhood is going to come in. He plays on fear,” Rabie said.

“Obviously it’s scary, but if everybody buys into that fear nothing will change in this country.”

The House of Commons held a debate on the Egypt situation on Wednesday night.

The “take-note” debate will allow MPs to express their views on the escalating violence, and will not lead to any binding vote on the government.

Liberal foreign affairs critic Bob Rae, who called for the debate, told the Commons that Canada was slow to respond to the unfolding events in Egypt because consular offices are under-resourced.

“Canada consistently finds itself under-resourced without enough people on the ground and without a sufficiently determined response time from the government in Ottawa,” Rae said.

Rae earlier said he believed it was important for the House to have a chance to discuss what the consular reaction and other reaction has been to events affecting Canadians.

“Equally important, I think the House needs to have an opportunity to discuss the unfolding situation which, day by day, indeed hour by hour, becomes more difficult and more serious,” he said.

During the debate, Deepak Obhrai, the parliamentary secretary of foreign affairs, said Canada will continue to push for democratic reforms in Egypt and elsewhere in the Middle East.

“This government’s strong policy has been to promote democratic rights (and) human rights around the world, including in Egypt,” he said.