Original author: TASC (Toronto Action for Social Change)
Source: TASC Email List
Date: September 12, 2005


Friends, given the sheer amount of recent activity, we don't want to fill up your email with lengthy messages. Instead, there are references to website postings on the following items:

1. Mahjoub Hunger strike Today, secret trial detainee Mohammad Mahjoub enters day 68 of a hunger strike which may very well take his life unless the governments of Ontario and Canada act to meet his demands for urgent medical treatment and contact visits with his children. For background information and suggestions for what you can do, please visit: [link]

2. Jaballah Bail Hearing This morning in Federal Court a bail hearing will resume for secret trial detainee Mahmoud Jaballah, which heard three days of emotional testimony last week. Jaballah, family and friends described the mental torture against him and his family from the past 4+ years of indefinite incarceration without charge or bail. A CSIS agent also testified for the better part of a day, and it was revealed that CSIS' latest report on the effect of incarceration on long-term detainees appears to have deliberately held back crucial information from the Canadian government. A detailed report from the bail hearing is at:

[link]

(If you have trouble linking here, we can send you the full report in an email message)3. Hassan Almrei Expects Court Hearing October 11 Secret trial detainee Hassan Almrei, almost four full years into solitary confinement and recently finishing a 73-day hunger strike, wants to thank people across the country for their support, and asks folks to come to court on October 11 in Toronto as he seeks improved conditions of detention. Background on Hassan and his hunger strike can be found at [link] 4. This month, we expect the release of a report from the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which visited Canada for the first time this past June. The U.N. group met with the Secret Trial Five, and expressed in a preliminary statement "grave concern" that they are being held on mere suspicion. 5. Mark Your Calendars (Toronto and Southern Ontario) Vigilantes at the Border: The Minute Men, "National Security" and Border Activism: Saturday September 17, 2005. 7-9:30p.m., The Bahen Centre, 40 St. George Street , Rm. 1170, University of Toronto, (College and St. George), featuring speakers from Mexico, Canada, and the U.S. A poster for the event is at [link] On Thursday, September 22, at 7 pm, the University of Guelph will host a panel discussion on secret trials featuring Lawyer John Norris (who represents three of the Secret Trial Five), Mona Elfouli (whose husband is Mohammad Mahjoub) and Matthew Behrens of the secret trials campaign. Saturday, September 24 is a national day of action to end the wars and occupations of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Haiti, and to support war resisters here in Canada. For info: [link] The month of October features a cross-Canada National Film Board effort exploring the use of security certificates and other repressive measures. A series of short film screenings will take place in Toronto on Tuesday, October 18 at Innis Town Hall, University of Toronto, with a panel discussion featuring Ahmad Jaballah, Heather Mallick, and Sharryn Aiken. For more info.: [link] Fopr background information on secret trials, key documents, editorials about the process, and more, visit: [link] Free the Five in 2005!