We are selling advance tickets to help pay the up-front expenses for bringing "Taxi to the Dark Side" to Ottawa. Please consider buying your tickets now. How to buy advance tickets
For more information and to view a trailer for Taxi to the Dark Side www.nowar-paix.ca/taxi
posted on September 04, 2008 | in Category Charkaoui | by Brian
Source: The Montreal Gazette URL: [link] Date: September 3, 2008
MONTREAL - Canada's spymasters have already disclosed everything they can to Adil Charkaoui about their case against him - and any further revelations would breach national-security requirements, government lawyers trying to deport the Montreal teacher to Morocco told a Federal Court hearing in Montreal Wednesday.
Before reaching this conclusion, "we conducted a meticulous review" of all material related to Charkaoui that operatives of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) have collected on him over the years, federal lawyer Nancie Couture told the hearing.
Judge Danièle Tremblay-Lamer responded by asking Ottawa for precision - and asking for it in writing.
"I don't want any surprises," the judge said to the government's lead lawyer, François Joyal.
"I don't want any surprises in three months," she added at another point, during a series of tart exchanges with Ottawa's legal team.
posted on September 04, 2008 | in Category Charkaoui | by Brian
by Peter Rakobowchuk (CP) Source: The Globe and Mail URL: [link] Date: September 3, 2008
MONTREAL - Armed with a Supreme Court ruling, lawyers for suspected terrorist Adil Charkaoui will ask the Federal Court today to order immediate disclosure of the evidence in his file. In June, the Supreme Court of Canada slammed Canada's spy service for destroying the original evidence behind its allegation that the father of three is a terrorist.
Mary Foster, a member of Coalition Justice for Adil Charkaoui, a support group, says the Supreme Court has recognized the French teacher's right to see all the evidence against him.
'It's not enough to give him a summary, which the government has been doing so far,' she said in a telephone interview.
In a unanimous decision, the country's top court declared the Canadian Security Intelligence Service must retain the information it gathers, in order to 'uphold the right to procedural fairness of people in Charkaoui's position.'
Ms. Foster says Mr. Charkaoui's lawyers need all the information that exists in his file so they can prepare a proper defence.
'If he was going to have to pay a $50 fine, well, maybe a summary is enough, but the fact that he might have to pay with his life means that a summary is not enough,' she said.
Mr. Charkaoui, a landed immigrant from a coastal town near Casablanca, was arrested in Montreal in May, 2003. He was accused of being an al-Qaeda sleeper agent prepared to wage terror attacks against western targets.
Ex-RCMP commissioner Zaccardelli slams U.S., CSIS over Arar affair
posted on September 04, 2008 | in Category Maher Arar | by Brian
by Canwest News Service Source: The Ottawa Citizen URL: N/A Date: September 03, 2008
Mounties led to believe Ottawa man would be sent back to Canada
Following the 9/11 terror attacks, the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush "threw out the rule book" when it came to co-operating with its allies, former RCMP commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli said in an interview that aired last night.
In the interview with CBC, Mr. Zaccardelli also had harsh words for his former counterparts in the national security business -- the Canadian Security Intelligence Service -- over the Maher Arar affair.
Mr. Arar was arrested six years ago as he passed through New York on his way home to Ottawa from a family holiday in Tunisia . He was then sent to a Syrian prison, where he was held and tortured for a year.
The RCMP had been watching Mr. Arar, who was suspected of having ties to al-Qaeda, and had passed that information to the U.S. The U.S. authorities informed the RCMP they had detained Mr. Arar, Mr. Zaccardelli told the CBC, and then asked whether, if they sent him home, the RCMP would be able to arrest or detain the Syrian-born Canadian citizen. The Mounties replied that they did not have the evidence to detain him.
by Andrew Duffy Source: Canwest News Service URL: [link] Date: August 29, 2008
OTTAWA - The federal government is about to resume its epic legal campaign to deport five high-profile terror suspects.
All five of the country's security certificate cases have been scheduled to go before Federal Court judges in November and December - although there is one legal hurdle yet to clear.
The federal judges will be asked to determine the "reasonableness" of the security certificates based largely upon Canadian Security Intelligence Service evidence heard in secret. Reasonableness is a legal standard that is lower than those applied in criminal and civil court.
The five men targeted by the certificates include the Moroccan-born Adil Charkaoui, Hassan Almrei of Syria, Egyptians Mahmoud Jaballah and Mahamed Zeki Mahjoub and Algerian refugee Mohamed Harkat.
posted on August 30, 2008 | in Category Charkaoui | by Brian
Source: Coalition Justice pour Adil Charkaoui URL: [link] Date: August 30, 2008
YOUR PRESENCE IS NEEDED IN COURT Security Certificate Round Two: Federal Court asked to implement second Supreme Court decision
Federal Court Hearing Wednesday, 3 September 2008, 9:30 am 30 McGill Street, Montreal (Metro Square Victoria)
Please come out to court in a simple, concrete act of solidarity with the Charkaoui family and others who are being subject to arbitrary detention and threatened with torture in the name of "national security".
Round two of Charkaoui's security certificate process will begin on Wednesday, under the new-but-not-different law. In this hearing, Charkaoui and his lawyers will ask the Federal Court to implement the second ruling of the Supreme Court in Charkaoui's case ( [link] )
Join the Fall 2008 Caravan to End Canadian Involvement in Torture, Southwestern Ontario, October 17-22, 2008
Join a nonviolent community on wheels for part or all of our journey as we travel through dozens of communities in a large triangular area (Toronto to Kitchener-Waterloo to London, then through Tillsonburg, Simcoe and Welland, up through Niagara Falls, St. Catharines, Hamilton and Mississauga) October 17-22.
The Caravan intends to expose and challenge the many ways in which the Canadian government is increasingly involved, both directly and indirectly, in policies and practices that result in the torture of human beings. While it is possible that a federal election may be underway during our caravan, we see this as a good opportunity to challenge all parties to commit to ending ALL forms of Canadian complicity in torture.
This email has details on getting involved with the caravan, why it is taking place, a city-by-city schedule, details on providing financial support for the caravan, and a list of demands. If you plan on joining us please let us know as soon as possible for so that we can cover the necessary logistics from this end. Thanks!
For a 3-minute youtube promo of the fall caravan (with highlights from our first caravan), see [link]
Additional footage of the spring caravan is available at:
Source: Agence-France Presse URL: [link] Date: August 20, 2008
ALGIERS (AFP) — Two car bomb attacks in eastern Algeria killed at least 12 people, state radio and a Canadian employer reported Wednesday with the country still reeling from a suicide bomber who killed 43 people a day earlier.
At least 31 people were also wounded in the latest attacks in the town of Bouira, one on a passenger bus and another near a military headquarters, Algerian radio said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility but an Al-Qaeda group has staged several attacks in Algeria over the past year and has been involved in clashes with government forces in the oil and gas-rich state.
One bomb targeted a bus parked near the Sophie hotel, in the city centre. The second bomb went off near the military headquarters in Bouira, which is 120 kilometres (70 miles) southeast of Algiers.
By Jeffrey Fleishman Source: The Los Angeles Times URL: [link] Date: August 20, 2008
The government has been battling an insurgent group calling itself Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, which has grown stronger in the last 18 months.
CAIRO -- A suicide car bombing at a police academy killed at least 43 people Tuesday in Algeria, where the government has been battling a resurgent Islamic militant group that has attacked international organizations and security-related targets.
The bomb exploded about 7 a.m. near the entrance to a paramilitary police training school in the Les Issers district, about 40 miles east of the capital, Algiers. Witnesses quoted by Algerian media said that most of the victims, including at least 38 wounded, were parents and recruits waiting to register for the academy's entrance exams.
The Interior Ministry said the casualty figures were preliminary estimates.
No group immediately claimed responsibility. The attack followed a bombing Aug. 9 that killed eight people, mostly national police officers, near a navy compound and beach resort. That followed a double bombing in December that targeted a United Nations building in Algiers and killed about 40 people.
An Algerian journalist, who asked not to be named, said by telephone that the explosives had been placed in a van. He said that state television was restricting news coverage of the carnage and that roads to the site had been blocked.
Calll-Out Source: NOWAR-PAIX List URL: [link] Date: August 20, 2008
The human rights rally for Abousfian Abdelrazik, originally scheduled for Friday, August 22 has been rescheduled for Friday, September 12, 12 Noon, at the Human Rights Monument (Elgin at Lisgar).
HUMAN RIGHTS RALLY Friday, September 12, 12 Noon Human Rights Monument (near provincial court house on Elgin Street) BRING ABOUSFIAN ABDELRAZIK BACK TO CANADA!
Abousfian Abdelrazik, a Canadian citizen, is currently in limbo in the Canadian Embassy in Sudan, with the Canadian government obstructing every effort to bring him home.
But the right of citizens to enter Canada is absolute! When the government refuses to bring home Canadian citizens, the value of citizenship is lowered for all.
This case has attracted little attention in Canada as predicted by CSIS in an October 16, 2003 memo:
We judge it unlikely that, should Abdelrazik's detention in Sudan become public knowledge, there would be the same sort of outcry that surrounded Maher Arar's arrest and deportation from the USA. IT IS TIME TO GET INFORMED AND PUT PRESSURE ON THE CANADIAN GOVERNMENT! COME TO THE RALLY ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 AT NOON Has the Government of Canada learned anything from the Arar case? How can we apply pressure to bring Abousfian back to Canada?
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Abousfian was labeled as a terrorist suspect by CSIS; while in Sudan in July of 2003 to visit his mother, he was picked up, jailed and tortured. His treatment since then has been so similar to that of Maher Arar that Lorne Waldman (Lawyer for Maher Arar) writes
'In Sudan, a disturbing case of déjà vu!' See [link]
(And click through the timeline at the bottom of this web page to get a quick look at Abousfian Abdelrazik's story.)
Support our work. Please write us a cheque or money order. We urgently need it. Please make it payable to "Justice for Mohamed Harkat Committee" and mail it to:
Justice for Mohamed Harkat Committee c/o 22 Rue Dalpé, Apt 6 Gatineau, QC J8Y 2Y5
Once your cheque or money order is in the mail, confirm at: justicepourmohamedharkat at yahoo.ca
Here is the contact information for Sophie Harkat. Media, please take note that due to Moe's bail restrictions Sophie must be contacted at her home phone that is listed below:
Email Sophie: sophielamarche AT hotmail.com
Home phone (613) 523-1975 ext3 to leave a message
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Our legal team:
Matthew Webber B.A., LL. B. Cell.: (613) 296-2544 Office: (613) 235-9779 webber@webberschroeder.com 116 Lisgar Street, Suite 200 Ottawa, ON K2P 0C2
Norman D. Boxall LL. B. Office: (613 ) 236-0535 nboxall at bsbcriminallaw.com 200 Elgin Street, Suite 500 Ottawa, ON K2P 1L5
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Christian Legeais, spokesperson and bilingual media contact:
Email Christian: justicepourmohamedharkat AT yahoo.ca Phone: (613) 276-9102
