This Candidate (for resident status) Demonstrates An Inability To Adapt

"This was very nasty [physical attack]. You are now in Canada. We do not place restrictions on the way that women live here, unlike in some other countries."
"Just because you think that someone has displayed bad manners, getting into a fight is no remedy for that."
Judge Kirk MacDonald, provincial court, Edmonton

Ed Kaiser/Edmonton Journal   The Edmonton courthouse

It surely isn't going too far to conclude from this stunning tale of a clash of cultures and religious ideology reflecting yet another instance when a man from a patriarchal culture has demonstrated his incapacity to adjust to a welcoming country's social and cultural values, that this judge suspended judgement beyond what the action that took place on November 6, 2015 warranted.

The man, Aadel Moradi, 39 years of age, had emigrated from Iran to Canada fifteen years earlier. In that period of time, demonstrating his unwillingness or/and inability to integrate into Canadian culture and accept the social values of his new country more than cried out for him to receive the full brunt of the law for his criminal offence. This is one individual; his Iranian heritage is only part of the problem; enlightened Iranian men would likely condemn his behaviour.

Instead, Justice MacDonald, who even commented that in his opinion it was "very sad" that the accused was incapable of identifying and honouring Canadian social mores, decided to place the man on an 18-month probationary period, after he had, through his lawyer, pleaded guilty to assault. Had the assaulter been anyone other than an Iranian immigrant, the full legal penalty of his actions would have fallen upon him.

In fact, it wasn't only the judge that relented, deciding to handle this display of contempt for Canadian values with kid gloves. He, it appears, conceded to a joint submission by the Crown and defence lawyers, who between them decided that the man's violently offensive actions should receive a lesser penalty than the jail sentence the judge had originally considered.

As Crown prosecutor Bethan Franklyn informed the court, Mr. Moradi and his wife had been accosted by a co-worker of the wife, who had noted their presence in the mall, and simply wanted to say a bright 'hi there!' to someone he regularly interacts with at their place of employment. This happened in late October. Mr. Moradi responded by indignantly asking how the man knew his wife.

He then ordered the man not to speak with his wife. And on November 6, Mr. Moradi accompanied his wife to the office in downtown Edmonton where she worked, requesting an audience with the human resources personnel to discuss the mall incident. He eventually spoke with Ross Undershute, chief executive of the health consulting organization, ordering him: "No men are allowed to speak to his wife, and she can't speak to any men".

When Mr. Undershute explained that this would be an impossible state of affairs in a working environment, the husband refused to leave the premises and asked to do so, and became abusive. He "clawed and scratched" Mr. Undershute's face, spat at him, and attempted to kick, knee, slap and bite Mr. Undershute, who suffered scratches to his nose and lips.

Lawyer Rob Shaigec informed the court that his client had been offended by his wife's co-worker's public approach, speaking to his wife without first introducing himself to his wife's husband, presumably to seek permission to do so, for based on his culture and upbringing this scenario represented a social misdemeanor. This, of a man who had lived one-third of his life in Canada.

Little wonder the couple, parents of a six-year-old boy, has since separated. Mr. Moradi's wife may yet be flexible enough to adapt successfully to Canadian social mores of equality and decency, and be able to raise their son in a milieu that will be conducive to his becoming a credit to the country. As for Mr. Moradi, one of the conditions of his probation is that he take an anger management course, and perform 50 hours of community service.

He is furthermore, forbidden from approaching his wife's office and nor may he make any contact with Mr. Undershute as well as three others of his wife's co-workers. It is this man's controlling pathology that led him to ventilate his rage that other men had dared to impinge on his perceived ownership of his wife; blaming the culture is only a part of the problem although the culture entitles men to believe that absolute control of women is a divine right.

But not in Canada.