bout de papier, Vol. 6, No. 1 (1988) — Spring 1988 // Printemps 1988, p. 25
There has always been a fuzzy line when it comes to the limits of consular assistance to be provided to Canadians abroad. There is the constant judgement call which must be made between following our consular mandate by providing legitimate assistance to Canadians in distress abroad and the countervailing principle that one must guard the taxpayers money and not let travellers freeload off the government. Regrettably the tendency for the Department to stand on a matter of principle even at the price of appearing insensitive or callous can sometimes exact a harsh toll on a hapless individual. The following short example gives an idea.
The case involved an individual who had come to India as one of the flower children in the late 1960’s, and who had wandered around the country constantly elevated on an abundance of the psychotropic substances which are so readily and cheaply available in that country. He had eventually fallen onto hard times, however, and in 1970 had been repatriated to Canada. The money was not recovered, and this remained on the record.
The lure of India proved too much for our intrepid adventurer and a few years later he was back again. This time he threw remaining caution to the wind. Ultimately the accumulated effect of many years in an altered state of consciousness, took its toll. By late 1983, our fellow was clearly in bad shape. We began receiving pleading requests from charitable organizations and concerned individuals in south India that our Canadian was totally indigent, in failing health, mentally incapacitated and sleeping under bridges. I requested on more than one occasion to headquarters that the situation had become so pathetic that on humanitarian grounds we should repatriate. Each time we received the hard line from Ottawa. No repatriation. If our desperately sick vagrant had relatives who would front the money, we could assist in arranging transportation back to Canada. Otherwise he was completely on his own.
A few weeks after the last rejection of repatriation we received a message from south India. This time it was not another request to help our distressed and impoverished Canadian. We were notified by the authorities that he had died … of starvation.
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Originally published in bout de papier, Vol. 6, No. 1 (1988) — Spring 1988 // Printemps 1988, p. 25. Read the rest of this issue →
