Fed. Appeal Court to Rule on Secret Trials in Canada

[JohnyCanuck]

Unconstitutionality, plus CSIS lies, "evidence" derived from torture, destruction of original materials, illegal house raid, disregard for solicitor-client privilege ...

I am the wife of Mohamed Harkat who has been a Security Certificate Detainee since International Human Rights Day, December 10th, 2002. The following is an update regarding the current court proceedings, some of the shocking irregularities in this case, and a request for any assistance you can provide to help free my husband and keep him in Canada.

Security Certificates and Secret Evidence
The Federal Court of Appeal is expected to rule on Security Certificates on Wednesday, April 25th, 2012. The challenge was about the constitutionality, the fact that all original material in Mohamed's case was destroyed and that Special Advocates were not allowed cross-examination of informants and human sources under the new process. The process remains secretive and unfair. The credibility of many sources was never tested even behind closed doors.

There are many reasons why we should all be concerned with the Security Certificate process.

In the Harkat case:

1 - CSIS admits using information that comes from or derives from torture.

2 - CSIS and CBSA listened to solicitor-client calls for months. Those calls are privileged and private.

3 - The informant failed a lie detector test and CSIS failed to tell the court.

4 - CBSA raided our home in May 2008 prior to the "hearing" to look for so-called evidence. CBSA sent 16 officers, 2 OPP, and 3 sniffing dogs (for drugs, explosives and currency) although we had the toughest bail conditions in Canadian history (surveillance cameras at all entrances, mail and phone intercepted, 24/7 supervision by a court appointed surety, GPS, pre-approved outings (3 outings for a maximum of 12 hours/per week outside the home) pre-approved visitors, no cell phone or computer access, curfew on the property and so many harsh conditions. The raid was later found to be unconstitutional and delayed the scheduled hearing.

5 - All original material in this case was destroyed. All notes, interviews, intercepts and everything related to the case no longer exist. We were only given transcripts. Many of the transcripts are incorrect and incomplete. It is impossible, for example, to verify the voice on an original intercept.

6 - CSIS used outdated or incorrect information on numerous occasions falsely linking my husband to the Bin Laden network

More at:
http://yayacanada.blogspot.com/2012/04/fed-appeal-court-to-rule-on-secret.html

[shockedcanadian]

1. Best post on here in some time...

Human rights are precious; freedom has been fought for and countless have died fighting for it, whether it was against fascists in the 40's through the 70's or terrorists who wish to strike fear in a civilization.

While I am supportive of those who are sworn to defend us they do not get carte blache pass to do anything they please to anyone while they remain in complete secrecy. This, by definition, is undemocratic.

I despise terrorists and their motivations; they are some of the worst of mankind. Anyone who believes in killing innocents for some warped ideology; real or imagined persecution will receive no sympathy from me. This does not mean that I will sacrifice what is paramount to our great nation by allowing other career driven, foolhardy human beings to do as they please while we accept their findings. There is no "honour system" in the legal rights of Canadians; whether in detaining or bringing someone to justice. We can never simply take their "word
for it"; we are all adults playing with real peoples lives; we can handle the truth, if the security apparatus cannot make their case in public than they should not have arrested someone.

The basic premise of the Magna Carta, now hundreds of years old was the right to a fair trial where you see the evidence against you. If we decide that secret trials are acceptable than we have in fact told the terrorists that they have won. We HAVE altered our way of life due to their actions. The amount of abuses that will continue has no limit, no particular group of people or particular mode of threat, as fear mongering Richard Fadden put it, "lone wolf threats" are among us. Guess who are the lone wolves? Anyone they care to name for any particular reason...

Many Canadian soldiers are lying in graves. The majority of them died fighting for what we believe in; our way of life, our freedoms. I do believe that many citizens envy our freedoms, they probably look at us as people who take them for granted. For the sake of those who have died it is the obligation of every Canadian to protect these freedoms. Even to those we despise and have no sympathy for; it is the rule of law and we are bound to follow it if we want to remain the society so different from the tyranny's we have been taught to denounce.

If someone is guilty of a crime, CSIS, the RCMP and OPP can provide the evidence. They do not need to provide names and details of their sources, simply call them pseudo-names or give them numbers, but the evidence needs to be provided. If the agencies are unwilling to back their evidence up through a trial than it is not worthwhile evidence. We should not be protecting foreign sources or agents beyond what is acceptable, this is Canada, we are a sovereign country and we should be answering to only our own delegates (the population). They can still easily protect their sources and they know it, but they would prefer absolute secrecy; this God syndrome has to stop.

I have personally had dealings with the security apparatus for many years. I do not trust them. The majority of covert agents I have known are con men, town criers, fear mongerers, and quite frankly self-serving liars. Truth to them is whatever allows them to pursue a target, continue to remain busy, justifying their existence and increasing their budgets. The life of other human beings be damned! Are all of them like this? I sure as hell hope not, but enough are that operate undercover. The abuses that go on have to be staggering since accountability doesn't exist. In fact, CSIS and the RCMP in particular can get away with alot more against their own citizens than even some of the best agencies in the world, including those in the U.S, England and Israel. This is not something to be proud of. Anyone interested in where we are headed needs to research the Stasi of East Germany. ignorance is no excuse for allowing such an environment to take hold.

So, as George Bush aptly stated, "you are with us or you are with the terrorists". I am choosing to remain with us, this means I am against secret trials.