The 2015 Canadian federal election is going to be held on October 19 with the aim of electing members to the House of Commons of the 42^nd Parliament of Canada. The leaders of the political parties have already initiated their campaign tours. Conservative Leader Stephen Harper is one of the most active leaders as the leader of the majority. During a campaign speech, Harper demonstrated a map of ISIS-controlled zones in order to show which regions would be forbidden for Canadian citizens.

Harper aims to prevent terror tourism as a part of the anti-terrorism efforts of Canada. Nevertheless, restricting travel rights is interpreted as restricting human rights by some religious and political authorities. Harper, apparently, doesn’t agree with this view since he explicitly uttered that traveling to such places is not a human right. He furthered his claim saying that people go to such places only for specific purposes.

Harper’s statement concerning the travel ban is regarded as a mere electoral posturing by the Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau who stated that “Canada is a country that respects people’s rights.

Spokesman for the Syrian Canadian Council Faisal Alazem stated that Syrian-Canadian community does not take this perspective well since such a restriction would prevent people to meet their relatives in their home countries. According to Stephen Harper, press members, aid workers and diplomats can still travel without restriction.

According to sociology professor Lorne Dawson, the travel ban will not stop anyone from traveling overseas to fight with the jihadists. It is a known fact that a vast number of Westerners snuck into Iraq and Syria in order to fight alongside ISIS militants.