|
|
|
|
|
Terror suspects'
treatment questioned by citizen group HAROLD LEVY / Toronto Star | June 8 2006 The 17 accused men and youths arrested on terrorism-related charges are victims of a "rush to judgment," a Toronto-based citizens' group has charged. "The events of the last few days have been tragic and troublesome," said Wilfrid Laurier University Professor Jasmine Zine, spokesperson for the group, Concerned Citizens Against a Rush to Judgment. "However, what is equally disconcerting, in our opinion, is the tremendous rush to attribute guilt without meaningful questioning of the security apparatus or being thoughtful in scrutinizing the evidence." The group plans to raise issues relating to the suspects' treatment and media coverage of the case at a Ryerson University press conference today. Louise Botham, president of the Criminal Lawyers Association, told the Star she agrees with the group's concern that the accused, according to "widespread media reports," have not been permitted to meet privately with their lawyers. "This should be of great concern to everyone," Botham told the Star. "The right to counsel is only effective where no else is listening." Botham expressed hope that Canada is not following the lead of the United States, "where we have seen a willingness to relax civil liberties when allegations of terrorism are concerned." "If in fact these accused people are not able to communicate with their counsel privately, then we are seeing a different standard for terrorism-related charges than for any other criminal charges," she said. Botham said she understood why the group would be upset by the presence of "flak-jacketed police and sharpshooters" on the roof of the Brampton courthouse where the accused appeared, but noted: "This is not the first case where there has been massive security." "I don't like to see what we saw the first day," she added. "But the reality is that we saw what happened last summer in London, and Barcelona. "It seems excessive, but there could be legitimate security reasons to address." Although the Concerned Citizens group claims the leg irons worn into court by the accused conjure memories of the treatment of plantation slaves, Botham says "leg irons are not unique to this case. Judges can be asked to hold hearings to determine whether the restraints are necessary," she said. Mark Federman, former chief strategist at the McLuhan Program in Culture and Technology at the University of Toronto, agrees with the group's concern that public officials, in statements to the media, may be pre-judging the accused. "Look at what happened in the United States over the past five years when public officials stirred up terror-related spectacles," Federman said. "The authorities have instigated the type of fear and paranoia that has allowed the (U.S.) administration to do things that otherwise would not have been allowed constitutionally or legally." Federman stressed that rather than accepting, repeating and amplifying the government's messages during the current "spectacle," the media "should be casting a critical light on what is being said or not being said, and on what we know and do not know." Lieutenant Governor James Bartleman, flanked by leaders of Ontario's Muslim community, yesterday reinforced a message of calm and tolerance in the wake of the arrests. "In times of crisis, we must keep our cool," he said at a Queen's Park news conference. He urged Canadians to "think of the fundamental values which define our identity as Canadians, no matter our origins or our religious beliefs. If we do not, we will pay the consequences in terms of intolerance and racism that affects all minorities in this country." Muslim leaders also called for tolerance, saying the actions of a few should not turn into hate crimes. "We're in a phase of backlash," said Iman Hamid Slimi, a representative on the Ontario Multi-Faith Council. "We need your support and protection. We're working closely with the law-enforcement agencies." The Concerned Citizens group says the media has violated the privacy rights of family members "whose photographs are splashed, often without consent, across the paper or the television screen." Federman says images of the women wearing traditional dress bring to mind Afghanistan and Iraq, "where we have seen women in burqas over the past five years." "The danger is that the viewers or readers form an association between the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) and Afghanistan," said Federman. "An image is planted in the mind which increases the fear and paranoia and makes us much more susceptible to abuses by the authorities." He agrees with the group's contention that some media, with their saturation coverage, are depicting the accused men as terrorists, and refusing opportunities to counter "racist" labels, such as "the Jihad generation" pronounced by "Conservative and anti-Muslim think tanks." "These sorts of extreme opinions feed the cycle of fear and paranoia," Federman said. "This is not a responsible position even for an opinion columnist." Allan Bonner, a Toronto media relations expert, said the group's claim that Prime Minister Stephen Harper has suggested Canadian Muslims cannot accept "Canadian values" should be treated with caution because "there is a risk that anything the Prime Minister says at a time like this can be misconstrued." "When people are fearful, they often interpret things in the most negative way possible," Bonner said. The group's supporters also include community activist Abbas Syed, who has fought against privatization of hospitals, Grace-Edward Galabuzi, author of Canada's Economic Apartheid: The Social Exclusion of Racialized Groups in the New Century, Toronto immigration and human-rights lawyer Amina Shirazee (the wife of lawyer Rocco Galati, who is representing several of the accused men), labour activist Winnie Ng, and several sociologists and political scientists at Ontario universities. with files from curtis rush ---------------------------------------------------
Prison Planet.tv: The Premier Multimedia Subscription Package: Download and Share the Truth! Please help our fight against the New World Order by giving a donation. As bandwidth costs increase, the only way we can stay online and expand is with your support. Please consider giving a monthly or one-off donation for whatever you can afford. You can pay securely by either credit card or Paypal. Click here to donate. |
