Jean-Michel Lacombe, The Concordian, 16 October 07

The citizen's group Coalition Justice for Adil Charkaoui (CJAC) hopes to sensitize Canadians to the fact that the government practice of extraordinary rendition is happening more frequently than many believe.

At its discussion and strategy forum, slated for Oct. 21, the group aims to challenge any belief that cases like Maher Arar's - a Canadian citizen subjected to torture in Syria due to allegations of terrorism - are an exception.

The case of Arar opened the eyes of many Canadians to the government's practice of extraordinary rendition - of transfering people under suspicion of terrorist activities to a foreign state, often to the threat of torture and prolonged imprisonment.

Panelists for the CJAC's discussion include Abdullah Almalki and Adil Charkaoui, two men who have faced similar situations to Arar's. "These practices exist because authorities are relying on people not to challenge them," said Mary Foster, spokesperson for CJAC. "Hopefully an event like this will be a step towards changing that."

Almalki, a Syrian-born Canadian visiting family in his native country in 2002, was detained by authorities and held captive and tortured in a Syrian jail for a period of 22 months. He was arrested under suspicion of terrorist activities based on information sent to the Syrian government by the RCMP. Released in 2004 and acquitted of all charges in Syrian State Supreme Security Court, he is now at the center of a Canadian Federal inquiry examining what role the Canadian Government played in his detention. Charkaoui, a French teacher living in Montreal, was detained without charge or trial in May 2003 in the Rivière des Prairies Detention Centre located outside of Montreal, where he spent nearly two years. He was arrested under a security certificate, a legal mechanism that allows the Government to detain and potentially deport refugees or citizens suspected of threatening national security through their activities or associations. Charkaoui was released nearly two years later, yet he is still under surveillance and has severe control restrictions.

Foster said the panel is meant to bring a broad range of perspectives on government procedures used in the name of national security. In February 2007, the Federal Supreme Court ruled the practice of security certificates violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and branded their use unconstitutional. Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government has said that it will review certificate legislation and reinstate it.

"We think this is a case of reaffirming certain illegal actions through a legal process," said Foster.

Also speaking at the event will be Yavar Hameed, a lawyer specializing in the areas of immigration and criminal law, and Dominique Peschard, social rights activist and vice-president of the Ligue des Droits et Libertés.

A free dinner is planned following the panel. "The idea is to set a relaxed, open mood and to reinforce that sense of community," Foster said. The evening will end with an informal strategy session regarding security certificates and how the practice relates to extraordinary rendition, Charter rights violations, matters of racial profiling, national security and government control. All attending are welcome to participate in the strategy session.

The event takes place Sunday, Oct. 21 at 5 p.m. at Comité d'Éducation aux Adultes de la Petite-Bourgogne et de St-Henri (CÉDA) 2515 Délisle St., metro Lionel-Groulx.