Syrian Refugee Charged with Murdering 13 y/o Girl Near Vancouver

Syrian community fears scapegoating after man new to Canada charged with murder of 13 y/o Marrisa Shen

'The saddest thing is mostly [I've] heard from other Syrians

who are extremely shocked by what happened'

CBC News 

Marrisa Shen (pictured) went missing from her home near Central Park in Burnaby on July 18, 2017. Ibrahim Ali, 28, has been charged in connection with her death. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC)

​

Members of B.C.'s Syrian community say they are concerned the announcement of Ibrahim Ali's murder charge for the death of Marrisa Shen — and Ali's status as a former refugee — could lead to unwarranted backlash.

Police on Monday announced that Ali, 28, has been charged for killing Shen. They described him as a man with no criminal record who arrived in Canada 17 months ago as a refugee from Syria.

Those details caused concern for people like Danny Ramadan, who came to Vancouver from Syria four years ago, himself a refugee.

The acclaimed novelist and LGBTQ activist said for people in his community there is already fear of being vilified for one man's alleged crime.

"The saddest thing is mostly [I've] heard from other Syrians who are extremely shocked by what happened," Ramadan said.

"They're worried that, while they're trying their best to build a beautiful home for themselves here, this is a new challenge they may have to add to their plate of many challenges they are facing at the moment."

Novelist and activist Danny Ramadan says the Syrian community is shocked by the charge against Ibrahim Ali. (CBC)

Rahim Othman with the Syrian-Canadian Council of B.C. said there have already been negative comments surfacing on social media.

"This incident is an isolated incident," Othman said of the allegations. "It's unfortunate that there are sick and criminal people out there and these people can come from any community."

His group will be lighting candles for Marrisa Shen Friday morning outside Vancouver provincial court where Ali is expected to appear.

Rahim Othman with the Syrian-Canadian Council of B.C. plans to light candles for Marrisa Shen during Ali's next court appearance. (CBC)

Refugee and immigrant advocacy group Mosaic expressed its condolences for the Shen family while also expressing concern that media coverage is focusing too much on Ali's status as a former refugee.

"The focus on immigration status will negatively impact support for refugees, and erode the goodwill and generosity that the majority of Canadians have for this vulnerable population," a statement from the organization read.

"Ibrahim Ali is accused of a terrible crime, but if he is guilty, he is not representative of all refugees, nor of all Syrians.

"It has been shown that immigrants are statistically less likely to commit crimes than others, but as in everything else, there are always exceptions."

There are far too many exceptions in the Muslim community.

None of the allegations against Ali have been tested in court.

It's surprising that CBC actually even mentioned that Ali was a Syrian refugee. A web news site in Burnaby mentioned it and then deleted any mention of Syria from its report. It would seem there are people who pressure media outlets into protecting the public from knowing the truth. Having let the cat out of the bag, CBC is now trying to put it back in.

No, I'm not racist. I have empathy for Syrians and understand that many Syrians have been through Hell and back. But the Canadian government was supposed to protect Canada by bringing in families, not individual male refugees. Such young men could have backgrounds in IS, al-Nusra, al-Qaeda, etc., etc. and there is no way we would ever know until they start acting out their previous experiences. Such, I suspect, is what happened here.

The issue is not that the man is Syrian, but that he is Muslim, and, most likely, a believer in all that is insane about Islam.

.