Try Khadr in Canada
TERROR CHARGES A Canadian is being denied fairness, justice, basis rights and has no standing under Geneva Convention
Re U. S. charges Omar Khadr with murder, aiding enemy Nov. 8. Omar Khadr has been denied the most basic of legal rights entrenched in our Canadian Constitution. Despite being charged with terrorist- related offences in the United States, he is still a Canadian. And as such, he should be entitled to at least the basic rights and freedoms every Canadian has. Not only has he been denied basic legal pre-trial rights, allegations of torture ( which our own Canadian Security and Intelligence Service is alleged to have participated in) are at hand. Despite the fact that torture is not unheard of for detain- ees in Guantanamo Bay, I have to repeat that Khadr is a Canadian. A Canadian is being tortured in Guantanamo Bay. A Canadian is being denied fairness, justice and basic rights. A Canadian is being denied standing under the Geneva Convention. He is being denied standing as a human being, a Canadian.
I am sure there are countless pre- trial constitutional rights which have not been granted to Khadr. After all, having no standing under the Geneva Convention will deprive you of any protection from international laws and the protection afforded by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is only reserved for those to whom Canadian laws are being applied. The reality is that the laws being applied in the Khadr’s case are the same laws that will be applied at his trial. They were created by and belong to U.S. president George W. Bush. They are not international or Canadian or even American, for that matter. They are laws which were arbitrarily made up to serve Bush’s “ war on terror.” These laws are applied in courts which sacrifice justice for convictions and fairness for what they term “ national security.” Here is Canada’s chance to take a stand. This is Prime Minister Paul Martin’s chance to ask for justice on behalf of a country which believes in it. Let’s set the precedent for justice and fairness for Canadians detained abroad.
Let Khadr be tried and judged in Canada, a democracy. Mariana Alves, Mississauga