June 26, 2003

Morroccan Immigrant to be Deported

The Dominion - http://www.dominionpaper.ca

Adil Charkaoui, a 29 year old Morroccan immigrant and resident of Montreal, has been charged with being a "dormant agent" of Al Quaeda by CSIS. He is being deported under a section the one year old Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, which allows CSIS to gain approval from Solicitor General Wayne Easter and Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Denis Coderre to detain or deport immigrants without a conventional trial.

The public evidence offered by CSIS claims that Charkaoui associated with terrorists in the 90s, and that he visited Pakistan at the same time that Ahmed Ressam, a member of the Canada-based terrorist group that planned attacks on the Los Angeles Airport, was training in Afghanistan. No evidence is offered that connects Charkaoui to terrorist activity.

Under current Canadian law, a federal judge will examine the evidence provided by CSIS, and if she concurs, Charkaoui will be deported. Since CSIS claims the evidence would jeopardize national security if made public, Charkaoui and his lawyers will not be privy to the evidence against him. After a decision is made, no appeal is available. Charkaoui, who is married and has one child, has denied connections to terrorist activity in the past, and has claimed his arrest is retribution for refusing to spy on other Montreal muslims for CSIS.

Mohamed Harkat, an Algerian refugee, was arrested under a similar security certificate last December, and has been held in solitary confinement for seven months. Under similar claims of a risk to national security, Harkat has not been made aware of the details of the charges against him. His hearing is set for July. (Toronto Star, Canadian Press, Montreal Muslim News)

» Read more about the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act