Almost all of the African and other Third World delegates invited to the G-6B People's Summit have been denied entry visas by Immigration Canada, says the event's organizer.
News of the visa woes comes as Prime Minister Jean Chretien prepares to unveil a new aid and development plan for Africa at next week's G-8 summit. He also met with African labour leaders in Ottawa Tuesday.
Lynn Foster, organizer of the G-6B -- Group of 6 Billion -- said only two of the 60 delegates invited from Africa and the Indian subcontinent have been granted permission to enter Canada for this weekend's alternative conference at the University of Calgary.
Foster alleges the remaining 58 have been denied entry over concerns they'll claim refugee status upon arriving in Calgary.
"We're very disappointed," Foster said Tuesday. "This is not a good news story for delegates.
"At the moment, we have only two people from Nigeria coming. Everybody else has been turned down. They simply think these people will make a refugee claim."
A spokeswoman at the Prime Minister's Office declined to comment on the optics of banning African delegates to the G-6B when African aid is the centrepiece of the G-8 summit.
Immigration Canada spokeswoman Susan Scarlett said confidentiality rules prevent her from discussing individual visa requests.
Foster says the delegates -- the majority from Africa -- have told her the main reason they were denied visas is due to the fear they intend to seek asylum.
"That's just not a rational thought," Foster said.
"These people are all involved in their communities. They have jobs, families and property in their home countries."
Scarlett defended the visa application process, saying all applicants, whether from the Third World or western nations, must meet the same criteria.
A criminal record and the risk an applicant might flee are two factors that could result in the denial of a visa application.
"People from all across the globe apply to enter Canada and most of the time we say yes," Scarlett said.
"Each application is processed on a case-by-case basis. It's as individual as the people who are applying," Scarlett said.
The G-6B conference is meant to be a voice for the rest of the population not invited to attend the June 26 and 27 G-8 summit in Kananaskis.
All guest speakers at the conference -- many of whom are from Africa -- have been granted visas.
Bill Warden, G-8 director for the U of C, said Immigration Canada's decision to deny visas to African delegates is distressing, given aid to Africa is supposed to be the focus of the G-8 summit.
"I think it's most unfortunate that people from Africa are being turned away," Warden said. "I don't believe for a minute that most of these (delegates) are intending to stay here."
About 900 delegates have registered for the conference, with most coming from Canada, the U.S. and western Europe.
The focus of the conference is the plight of Africa, and Foster said the voice of African delegates is crucial.
G-6B organizers had invited delegates from a host of foreign nations, including Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Gambia, Togo, Sierra Leone, India and Pakistan.
Foster said most of the delegates banned from entering Canada work for non-governmental organizations and are able to speak on behalf of average Africans.
"It's very frustrating that (the immigration department) won't allow the voices of African civil society to be heard," she said. "We're very disappointed."
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