Canadian News Roundup

Busy getting ready to move next week but these stories caught my eye:

- Pigs do fly. Steve is going to investigate his bff Brian Mulroney. He didn't exactly have much of a choice though, did he? (h/t penlan)

- If elected, Dion vows to slash poverty rates. He'd better have a different plan than the last Liberal government or that's just another empty promise. (Have you seen those ridiculously immature ads being run to mock Dion? Did the election campaign start and I missed it or what? If the Conservatives think they have to run ads like that during the off-season, that shows they must be a tad scared of what might happen to them when the next election is really called. They're looking desperate, don't you think?)

- Speaking of ads, I don't know who produced this video clip in response to the immoral Conservatives refusing to seek clemency for Canadians on death row in countries that are democracies (and are they kidding thinking the US is anything resembling a democracy these days with its horrendous human and civil rights abuses and a boy king at the helm who relished his days executing people in Texas?), but kudos to whoever took the time to put the clip together. And speaking of the death penalty, if you missed Bill Moyers' Journal on Friday nite, watch the interview with Thomas Cahill online. It's definitely worth seeing.

- The Center for Constitutional Rights (please visit their site) has launched Maher Arar's appeal but they'll have to get past the "national security" hurdle that resulted in the case being dismissed in a lower court. On another front in this case:

NEW YORK - Gasps broke out in a U.S. federal appeals court Friday as a U.S. government lawyer spoke of Maher Arar's "unequivocal membership of al-Qaida."

One of the court's three sitting judges echoed the reaction of many in the public gallery, declaring the statement stunned him too.

Not only has a Canadian judicial inquiry cleared Arar of having any terrorism links, but U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has admitted the U.S. government did not properly handle his case.

"It was kind of a shocking statement with which to start," Judge Robert Sack told Dennis Barghaan, one of three government attorneys opposing Arar's bid to see his lawsuit against the U.S. government reinstated.

Arar lawyer Maria Lahood hinted outside the courtroom the judge's reaction bodes well for Arar's case.

"To me, it was a sign the judge knew this was an innocent man," she said.

One can only guess what kind of bullshit "evidence" has been manufactured to back up that supposed al Qaeda link.

- New Khadr witness discovered. That could be a major development. In the meantime, our useless federal government is still leaving Omar Khadr to rot in Gitmo. If it had any concern for "Canada's standing in the world" (which it claims to when it defends continuing our presence in Afghanistan), it would actually try to help Khadr get out of legal limbo. In this case though, pigs won't be flying anytime soon.

- Looking for an old movie to rent this weekend? If you haven't seen it (and I'm sure some of you young whippersnappers out there haven't), check out In the Name of the Father. Caution: It will remind you of the Bush regime. Prepare to be infuriated.

If you live in Calgary, I'm looking for 3 (free) things: a wireless router for the new place, a dvd player (I've never owned one besides the one I have in this used laptop I recently got - really) and a flat panel monitor (any size) to replace my gargantuan 21" monitor that's as heavy as a teevee and which I'll either trade or give away. Drop me a line. My e-mail's up there on the left and the bonus, of course, is that you'd get to meet anonymous me in real life (oh how exciting!!). No stalkers please. My life is already interesting enough, thanks. (And yes, I belong to Freecycle™ and have posted wanted ads there and elsewhere).

I also found a local guy who's into recycling/refurbishing computer stuff that he then gives away to those in need. Just gave away my old 486 that I was using as a footstool. Glad someone can use it for its real purpose. I used it for years. (Yes, I'm still stuck in the 90s). If you want his number, let me know.

One last thing, my movers collect and donate things for Afghan/Pakistani refugees settling in the Calgary area. If you have something to donate, e-mail me and I'll forward your e-mail to them. I know someone did e-mail me the last time I mentioned them but I lost the e-mail. Sorry.
 

Bush Bans Torture? Not exactly

While George Bush issued an executive order on Friday "prohibiting cruel and inhuman treatment, including humiliation or denigration of religious beliefs, in the detention and interrogation of terrorism suspects" while still keeping acceptable interrogation methods secret, the Center for Constitutional Rights brought us this news:

On July 20, 2007, the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a ruling in two Detainee Treatment Act (DTA) petitions that, while ostensibly giving attorneys access to all government information for the DTA hearings, would also withhold key evidence that would likely point to torture of detainees. The ruling also includes a new protective order that would drastically curtail the ability of all attorneys to work with clients at Guantánamo and erodes attorney-client privilege.

The Court of Appeals acknowledged that the government’s failure to comply with its own Combat Status Review Tribunal (CSRT) procedures reinforces concerns about the adequacy of the CSRT process as a substitute for habeas corpus. But it also stated that “highly sensitive information” – likely to be information concerning the torture of detainees – can be withheld from attorneys.

The new protective order, issued as part of the ruling in Parhat v. Gates and Bismullah v. Gates, would:
• Allow the U.S. government to withhold “certain highly sensitive information” from attorneys, with certain classified information only offered on a “need to know” basis;
• Allow legal mail between attorneys and detainees to be inspected;
• Let the government redact from inspected mail any information that doesn’t specifically refer to events leading to the detainee’s capture and the conduct of the CSRT’s, including information relating to fears of repatriation to torture; and
• Allow only two attorney visits with detainees to obtain representation authorization (but would not require a detainee to sign a document giving authorization as the government had wished). This can be difficult when dealing with people who have been traumatized and have significant reasons not to trust the people they meet with.

So, of what use is an executive order against torture when a victim can't even get access to evidence of such treatment?

Further, there is no word yet on whether Bush's new order affects the section of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 that gives American government perpetrators of torture immunity from prosecution and since Bush conveniently opted out of the International Criminal Court in 2003, it's extremely unlikely that any CIA agent will ever be prosecuted for the war crime of torture.

Just more smoke and mirrors from Bush's legal advisors.

Related: The US isn't the only country that's trying to rework the ban on torture. See European Court of Human Rights: Ban on torture is absolute and universal.