Original author: Jim Bronskill (CP)
Source: The Globe and Mail
URL: [link]
Date: January 28, 2006


OTTAWA -- A United Nations working group says it is "gravely concerned" about Canada's use of special security certificates and calls on Ottawa to reconsider the tool for cracking down on suspected terrorists.

The UN working group on arbitrary detention says elements of the certificate regime jeopardize a person's rights to a fair hearing, to challenge the evidence used against them, and to ensure judicial review of their incarceration.

"This procedure allows the government to detain aliens for years on the suspicion that they pose a security threat, without raising criminal charges," says the body's report, made public yesterday.

The group, set up by the UN Commission on Human Rights, toured Canada during the first half of June at the invitation of the government. It visited detention facilities, including police stations, jails, and pre-trial and immigration holding centres in several cities.

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