Mamadou Konaté needs protection not deportation

Mamadou Konaté is a migrant worker from Ivory Coast who has lived in Canada for six years. He is at imminent risk of deportation on September 30.

The Canadian government rejected his refugee claims in 2016 and 2021, and issued a deportation order. After global mobilization on his behalf, a federal judge suspended Mamadou Konaté’s deportation on November 17, 2021, and issued a stay of deportation while a judicial review was being processed. Mamadou Konaté submitted an appeal to the federal court requesting a decision on his application for temporary status on humanitarian grounds on May 9, 2022, but it was denied. Now the Canadian government has set a new deportation date.

Having received threats after trying to leave Ivory Coast - and again in 2016 when he returned to the country - Mamadou Konaté's life would be in danger if deported.

The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, has the authority to stop the current deportation process of Mr. Konaté and to ensure that Canada respects its international obligations by not deporting a person at risk of torture. 

Mamadou Konaté © Amnesty International 

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mamadou Konaté worked in facilities accompanying vulnerable seniors. He was infected with Covid-19 at that time and was unable to obtain health insurance due to his precarious status. In 2020, the federal and Quebec governments launched programs to give permanent residency to refugee claimants who worked in healthcare services during Covid-19. The programs are discriminatory against certain healthcare worker roles such as janitorial positions.