Save Nathalie Morin

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Nathalie Morin

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 Canadians, and the position of the Canadian government, are in a constant state of arrested confrontation. Stereotypically, a Canadian would never challenge or face any problem which could be taken offensively by an adversary. Instead, the Canadian would attempt, poorly, to “rationalize” the situation and would conclude that it would be better to not take the offensive, as it will just make thing worse. This cowardly outlook on national, and international affairs is one of the many problems facing Nathalie Morin, 23, who is stuck between Islamic doctrine and the unwillingness of her native country.

 Nathalie Morin, a Canadian and a Quebecor, is being held against her will in Saudi Arabia, and is unable to leave the Muslim nation simply because she is a woman. Morin, along with her two children Samir and Abdullah, is a virtual captive in her own home due to her husband Saeed Al Sharahni forbidding her from leaving. Under Saudi law, which derives from the strict Islamic Sharia principles, she is the property of her husband and must have his permission in order to leave the country.

 Civil rights transcends all international borders. We must protect and fight for basic human rights, for all people, in all corners of the globe. Let no foe go unchallenged - Canadians must bring Nathalie Morin home. Freedom, and the rights we take for granted, is futile if you lack the courage to defend its basic principals.

 Nathalie Morin’s crisis is not an unfamiliar one. There are many countries, most notably Saudi Arabia, whose views on women and human rights in particular are archaic and uncivilized. There needs to be more pressure on these nations to relinquish barbaric and primitive behaviours. However, Ottawa has said in the past that Canadians in Saudi Arabia are subject to its laws. As I said before, the Canadian government is in a constant state of arrested confrontation. How can we morally exercise our own freedoms and deny one of our own citizens those same freedoms we take for granted? Deepak Obhrai, parliamentary secretary to Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon, met with Morin and her Saudi husband in late December in an attempt to try to convince Al Sharahni in letting his wife depart however no news on whether any progress was made. The Canadian government has missed the mark completely and should instead lobby and put pressure on the Saudis to let Nathalie Morin leave. An example must be made to the Saudis, and for the rest of the world, that Canadians will not hesitate to fight and defend human and civil rights on a national and an international scale.

 Canadians aren’t stupid. A Canadian knows whether or whether not rights are being trampled on. Nathalie Morin knows that her rights are being disregarded. We all know that, and we should all know that we are not doing enough. Ottawa and a few other disgruntled Canadians will tell others that they Saudi government is justified in their dealings with Nathalie Morin and that this is a ’touchy’ issue and we should sweep this under the rug. Those ungrateful unpatriotic citizens of this great nation would be singing a different tune if their circumstances were akin to those of Nathalie Morins. Support Nathalie Morin and her family. We need to defend the freedoms of men, women and their families and acknowledge that human rights go beyond pre-determined borders, cultures, and ethnicities.