Refugee Sandwich: Stories of Exile and Asylumby Peter Showler. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2006.
reviewed by Tim Wichert
Every year, about 25,000 people arrive in Canada, claiming to be refugees. All must eventually tell their story to a member of the Immigration and Refugee Board, who will decide whether to accept or reject their claim. But the process has always been politically controversial. Despite the promise of a new life for some, the Board is regularly criticized for its inefficiencies, patronage appointments, and occasional incompetence.
Peter Showler, a former Chairperson of the Board, weighs into the debate with his recent book – Refugee Sandwich: Stories of Exile and Asylum. Through thirteen stories, he introduces us to the various participants in the process: board members, government hearing officers, lawyers, interpreters, and of course the refugees themselves.
Some of the stories capture the colour and chaos of the refugee journey, which all eventually pass through the drab, grey, windowless hearing rooms with the “hollow rectangle of tables”. One of the most compelling is “Ghost”, the story of a Rwandan genocide survivor who silently – after her claim is accepted – “rises to leave the room she never entered”. Another is “A Real Nowhere Man”, whose story begins plausibly, but with a touch of black humour Showler effectively demonstrates how the “pieces of it start to flake off”. Sonia in “Crap Trap” is also a strong character, though her story almost loses its punch with one final unfortunate line.
Those stories that work best draw us into the harrowing refugee experience, by effectively taking us to Rwanda, Somalia, Moldova or El Salvador. But other times the writing is stilted and heavy: “They lingered in the office like two slightly malodorous farts”. And it is difficult to be captivated by a refugee story conveyed in the third person by a board member after a few beers in the pub.
Where the book ultimately succeeds is in portraying the dilemmas inherent in deciding the fate of individuals claiming refugee status in Canada on the basis of persecution which occurred a world away. Inevitably, this will remain an inexact science, based in part on perceptions, persuasion and even prejudices. The stories make that clear. As the aforementioned board member tells his pub colleague after a case is overturned by the court: “Truth is they just have a different opinion on the evidence, but they come up with some bullshit about ‘error of law’ to make it sound good”.
Eventually we wonder where Showler is taking us. Is this fact or fiction? Although his caveat at the outset insists the stories are “solely fiction”, they really lie somewhere in between, leading us towards his recipe for reform of the Board. The addendum’s list of four critical reforms is thoughtful and compelling. Unfortunately, by this point his plea that the Board is actually reparable rings hollow. His stories have largely succeeded in convincing us that perhaps it’s not.
In two heart-wrenching cases for example – Nothing but the Truth, and The Go-Between – it isn’t clear who exactly is to blame for the insufficient story-telling, nor how Showler’s prescriptions would have corrected the misunderstandings.
By the end, we wish it really was just a work of fiction. Sadly, for many of those refugees who are misunderstood and rejected, it’s not.
Tim Wichert practices law with Jackman and Associates in Toronto, focusing on refugees and immigration.
