By The Canadian Press

Man who sought refuge in B.C. church continues fight to clear his name

Mar 21, 2017 | 3:09 PM

VICTORIA — An El Salvadoran man who spent two years in a British Columbia church to avoid deportation on alleged terrorism links will continue his fight to clear his name on Thursday at the Federal Court of Appeal.

Jose Figueroa, who is studying law at the University of Victoria, says he is appealing a decision from last March that dismissed his request for a certificate from the foreign affairs minister stating he is not on a terrorist list.

Last November, he was in Federal Court asking it to rescind a report that said he was inadmissible to Canada due to his past membership in a political organization.

Figueroa was granted a ministerial exemption in December 2015 that allowed him to leave the Walnut Grove Lutheran Church in Langley.

But Figueroa, who arrived in Canada with his wife 20 years ago and claimed refugee status, says his alleged past links in El Salvador remain on his government files and affect his quality of life.

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Figueroa was a member of a student union that supported the Farabundo Marti National Liberal Front in El Salvador, which is now the country’s government, but denies he was a terrorist.