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A Vancouver council motion to oppose deployment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the city for the FIFA World Cup did not go to a vote after it was ruled out of order.
The motion had said allowing allegedly undertrained foreign ICE agents to conduct security operations in Vancouver this summer would contradict city policies around equity, safety and access without fear, as well as Canadian rights for migrants and due process.
But meeting chair, Coun. Mike Klassen, ruled the motion was incorrect because it supposes a deployment when it “has been made clear from correspondence” council received recently that ICE won’t be present for the games in Vancouver.
Coun. Pete Fry argued that the motion was pre-emptive, pointing out that American officials only announced plans to have ICE at this year’s Olympic Games weeks before the opening ceremony.
“All will be welcome here for the games,” Fry said in the Wednesday morning council meeting.
An attempt to overturn Klassen’s ruling and put the motion to a vote fell one vote short of the required two-thirds.
“U.S. agencies have zero jurisdiction, zero authority to conduct law enforcement in Canada,” said councillor Brian Montague.
Mayor Ken Sim told council he agreed the motion was out of order.
Sim issued a statement on Monday saying ICE has not been invited to operate in Vancouver for the World Cup, and are not welcome to conduct enforcement activities.
Wednesday’s motion by Fry and Coun. Sean Orr had said that if ICE agents are deployed to Vancouver, it could be expected to cause protests or boycotts, and potentially pose a danger to the safety of residents and visitors.
It noted that ICE has an “administrative and liaison presence” at the U.S. Consulate in Vancouver, but that U.S. law-enforcement agencies cannot operate in Canada without explicit government authorization.
If the motion had passed, it would have directed Sim to write to federal Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree and Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand, requesting that they reject any additional deployment.