"he seller is clearly in fault, he should have the obligation to refund both the item and shipping fees."
Yes, the seller is responsible to refund both.
Whoever you spoke to at eBay was wrong.
"I have called Ebay and, to make a story short, they can't really do anything about this..."
Whoever you spoke to at eBay was wrong.
Call again. Insist they should respect their guarantee which includes shipping charge in such instances.
PS - While the seller has a high rating, checking a bit more into that feedback you will notice 1,000 negative feedback (not a mistake: 1,000 negative feedback). Definitely not someone I would ever want to deal with.
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kh-leslie
Hello 'dimethegod',
A number of points I would like to bring up, - first is that you might like to have a look at the following link
about what to do if there is a problem with a transaction. A figurine in lieu of a coffee pot is certainly a problem:
http://pages.ebay.ca/help/buy/item-not-received.html#doesntmatch
Note where it says, A full refund is one that covers the cost of the item and original shipping.
The problem in this case is that you bought from a seller using the GSP. He did not refund the rest because he
cannot, -- part of it is Pitney-Bowes shipping fee and part of it is import charges. If you were not yet aware, any time
we in Canada buy something internationally with a declared value over $20 cdn (about $15 USD these days) it is
subject to duties and taxes.
You will have to get the rest of your money back from Pitney-Bowes. I don't know why the ebay rep was unable
to see this, - or did you not provide her with enough details?
You may want to call back as Pierre says, and this time ask to speak with someone who specializes in GSP claims.
If you are new to ebay it is hard to undestand why the difference, but this complex way of chasing down refunds is
but one of the many reasons most Canadians avoid sellers shipping with the Global Shipping Program.
Haha, 1000 negatives complaining of poor service is a reason in itself to avoid that particular seller.
This is a huge lengthy link about the GSP (if you love reading long dry policies), haha:
http://pages.ebay.ca/help/buy/shipping-globally.html#problems
I would say start buy re-calling ebay and asking to speak to a GSP claimant specialist. You will get all your money back,
you just have to spend time hunting it down.
Good luck 
And, 'dimethegod', if you were curious about the rules regarding importing by mail, you can look through these links
from Canada Border Services whilst you wait and wait and wait to get through to someone on the phone at ebay:
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/import/postal-postale/duty-droits-eng.html
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-voyage/pdt-pdt-eng.html#_s3
And just as an aside note, I would suggest looking at a seller's feedback but paying attention to the comments
themselves rather than strictly focusing on the number. The seller you bought from is pretty awful and the 98% shows
that, but with a smaller low-volume seller all it takes is one negative from an impatient person saying "slow shipping"
and that can drastically lower the 'percentage'. Yet he might be one of the kindest, most decent people on ebay.
So see the 'percentage', but then read to find out why, and how he responds. If he calls unhappy buyers all sorts of
filthy foul names (haha, it sounds funny, but I've seen this) -- do you want to buy from someone like that?
For today though, - just get that money back. It's yours and belongs in your pocket. 
