91原创 resident Jos茅 Figueroa says no matter what the school system may say, his children are Canadian.
Daughters Ruby and Esmeralda and son Jos茅 Ivan were all born in Canada and currently attend schools in the 91原创 school district.
Up until last year, they were treated the same as any other Canadian-born children, Figueroa says.
But then, the district sent a letter to Jos茅 and his wife Ivania, saying the children were 鈥渘on-fee paying international students鈥� and the parents would have to provide proof of residency in 91原创, proof of employment and proof they filed a tax return to verify that they are 鈥渙rdinarily resident鈥� in Canada.
Jos茅 Figueroa has been wagingagainst an attempt by immigration authorities to deport him back to his native El Salvador over his connection to an anti-government group that now governs the Central American country.
He is refusing to provide the requested documents to prove residency, saying the school district already has his work permit and his children鈥檚 birth certificates.
鈥淭hey are all Canadian citizens,鈥� Figueroa told The Times.
鈥淭hat doesn鈥檛 make any sense, that the status of my wife and I would interfere with their status.鈥�
He said the question is more than a point of principle.
If he and his wife should be deported, Figueroa said, the children might have to pay thousands of dollars in fees to keep attending school.
A spokesperson for the 91原创 School District, communications manager Sandy Wakeling, said privacy issues prevent him from discussing the specifics of the Figueroa case, but he did want to make it clear the children will be allowed to continue attending their schools despite the disagreement.
鈥淎t no time, presently or in the future, is the children鈥檚 enrollment in jeopardy,鈥� Wakeling told The Times.
He said the category of 鈥渘on-fee paying international student鈥� is used to identify children of parents who are not Canadian but are living locally.
It is intended to distinguish them from non-Canadian children whose parents do pay fees to have them study in 91原创 schools, Wakeling said.
He went on to say the wording simply means the parents of children in the Figueroa family鈥檚 category are not paying direct fees to the school district and don鈥檛 have to; the provincial ministry of education will cover them.
Wakeling was unable to say why the district did not put the Figueroa children in that category when the oldest, Jos茅 Ivan, started classes 10 years ago.
鈥淚n theory, it should have been asked for from day one,鈥� Wakeling said.
He added the district is legally required to categorize the children that way, or run the risk of running afoul of provincial education authorities who could deny the school district funding for such students.
鈥淚f we were were audited [by the ministry] they could withhold funding.鈥�
Figueroa provided The Times with a letter from the 91原创 school district international student program that says the fact the Figueroa children are Canadian 鈥渄oes not, by itself, necessarily qualify a child for provincial education funding鈥� and goes on to say the district will continue to request proof the parents are 鈥渙rdinarily resident鈥� in Canada.
Figueroa was ordered deported from Canada for belonging to the left-wing Farabundo Mart铆 National Liberation Front (FMLN), a group linked to violent acts against the regime that ruled the country during the civil war from 1980 to 1992.
Even though the FMLN went on to win a nonviolent and democratic election to become the government of El Salvador and even though the government of Canada has formally recognized the FMLN, the immigration laws still consider it a terrorist group.
Supporters of the Figueroa family have waged a high-profile publicity campaign to overturn the extradition order under the banner of 鈥淲e are Jos茅鈥� that has generated news coverage by local, national and international media outlets.
