Canada has joined Australia in suspending entry visas for people from Ebola-stricken countries in West Africa in an attempt to keep the deadly disease away.
Canada’s Conservative government said Friday it is suspending visa applications for residents and nationals of countries with “widespread and persistent-intense transmission” of Ebola virus disease.
Canada has not yet had a case of Ebola. Canadians, including health-care workers, in West Africa will be permitted to travel back to Canada, the government said.
The countries most severely hit by the worst Ebola outbreak ever are Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
Canada receives very few travellers from those countries, which have no direct flights to Canada.
A similar move by Australia was slammed Wednesday by Dr Margaret Chan, the World Health Organisation’s director general, who said closing borders won’t stop spread of the Ebola virus.
Canadian Health Minister Rona Ambrose said in a statement the “number one priority is to protect Canadians.” Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Alexander said the government would act in the “best interests of Canadians. “
Kevin Menard, a spokesman for Alexander, said the move is similar to but a bit less restrictive than the one the Australian government announced this week. He later called it “considerably different. “
“We have instituted a pause, but there is room for discretion and if we can be assured that someone is not infected with Ebola,” Menard said in an email after declining to comment on the phone.
He said the government was “doing anything we can to keep Ebola from coming to Canada.“
Nancy Caron, a spokesman for Citizenship and Immigration Canada, said that “a number of African countries have imposed stricter travel bans as have several other countries around the world. Other countries such as the United States have started to place restrictions on travelers from countries with Ebola outbreaks.”
The government said Canadian citizens or foreign nationals with a visa and foreign nationals who do not require visas will continue to be screened at ports of entry in Canada and will be subject to appropriate health screening.
Declining to criticise the move, an Obama administration official said Friday that Canada remains an important partner in the effort to stop Ebola.
The official was not authorised to discuss diplomatic relations by name and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for the United Nations secretary-general, said the world body welcomed Canada’s support in fighting the Ebola outbreak but also advocated “against isolating the three most impacted countries and stigmatizing its citizens. “