Message from Coalition Justice for Adil Charkaoui, 11 September 2007

 
Thank you very much to all who came out to support the Charkaouis and help monitor CSIS in Federal court today. Apologies to all who came out after 10am and found that it was over.

The hearing wrapped up very quickly. The outcome was that the motion for a stay of proceedings will be heard on 24 September, beginning with a cross-examination of the two La Presse journalists who published the leaked secret information.
Read the legal argument here.
 
Background
 
In June, the Montreal daily La Presse published leaked top secret information, containing unproven, sensational allegations against Adil Charkaoui. Charkaoui will argue in court that this criminal leak of information constitutes a violation of his charter rights and an abuse of procedure. He will argue that the unconstitutional "security certificate" proceedings against him should be halted on that basis.

In a separate motion, heard last month, Charkaoui argued that the conditions imposed on him should be lifted in view of the February 2007 Supreme Court ruling that the security certificate process is unconstitutional and in light of several revelations about the lack of credibility of the information in his file. A decision is still pending in this file.

The Supreme Court ruling did not put an end to the ordeal for Charkaoui, his family, and others subject to the abusive secret trial process. The 34-year old Montrealer is still living under severe restrictions on his liberty, on the basis of secret suspicions compiled by Canada's spy agency, CSIS. Three men in Ontario are held under house arrest, and a fifth, Hassan Almrei, is isolated in Canada's infamous "guantanamo north" in Kingston, Ontario. All remain under threat of deportation, despite the recognized illegality of the process and the acknowledged risk of torture.