Canada disappoints

Re: The blinding incoherence of Ottawa’s hotel quarantine, Chris Selley, Feb. 24

My father, born in 1919, after experiencing the Second World War, never stopped teaching to us the value of peace and solidarity between peoples and the strength of liberal democracies. He was an enthusiastic supporter of a united Europe and an admirer of the great statesmen who wanted it, and later of the other generations of heads of state or prime ministers who ensured peace and prosperity to Europe and to the world. Among them, his favourite outside of Europe was Pierre Trudeau, who also became a symbol of liberal democracies for me, and with him, Canada. For these reasons, I was proud that my daughter and her family, including my three grandchildren, moved to Vancouver five years ago.

Now, however, the disappointment is strong: I have planned my trip to Vancouver for the month of March since mid-January, but gradually the restrictions due to the pandemic have become more and more burdensome, becoming a path to increasingly stronger obstacles, until the introduction of the mandatory threeday stay in a special hotel.

Too bad that, to comply with this obligation, you can only call the numbers indicated by the Canadian authority, which proved impossible for an intercontinental call, with waits of more than three hours.

Furthermore, the Canada Border Services Agency never replies from the email address indicated on the online pages that report the rules for travellers; I have so far sent four emails, all without reply.

To conclude, I think that this is not worthy of a great liberal democracy like Canada. The fight against COVID-19 does not justify such unfair and inhumane treatment of a family member, like me, who wishes to reach her daughter and her grandchildren in Canada, on the occasion of spring break and after 14 months without seeing them, separated by 10,000 km.

Attilia Enrica Maria Giuliani, Milano, Italy

P.S. Meanwhile my daughter (calling from Vancouver) managed to book for me one of the government-approved hotels after about 20 hours of waiting in line on the phone.