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The first 50 lashes: a Saudi activist's wife endures her husband's brutal sentence
The Guardian 17/05/2016 - The new year began with an act of violence. On 7 January 2015, two masked men stormed the editorial offices of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris and shot 11 journalists. The next day, I spoke to Raif. I had spoken to him from prison several times before but will never forget that call as long as I live. "Have you heard about the attack in Paris?" I asked him. "No." Raif clearly had something else on his mind. "Ensaf, I need to tell you something. Will you promise me that you'll be brave - and not tell the children?" "Yes, of course." I sat down on a kitchen chair. I nervously fumbled a cigarette from the pack in front of me. "Tomorrow they're going to start enforcing my  sentence. One of the prison warders told me." It took me a moment to understand what he was telling me. "Yes, Ensaf. The first 50 lashes. I'll get them in front of the big mosque in Jeddah." I didn't know what to say. Over the past few weeks I had completely repressed the idea that Raif was actually going to be whipped in addition to his prison sentence. I simply couldn't imagine the authorities going ahead with it. "That's impossible," I struggled to say. "I'm afraid so, Ensaf," Raif said. What was I supposed to say? What do you say when the person you love tells you that he's going to be abused in the most horrible way? "Don't worry. I'm tough," he said, apparently quite cheerful. "I can take pretty much anything. I'll call you as soon as I can. OK?" "OK," I replied. I didn't sleep that night. Read more - Lire plusFree speech is under attack, from Beijing to Istanbul |
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Ontario seeks to crush criticism of Israel through a boycott campaign of its own
rabble.ca 19/05/2016 - Bill 202 prohibits university pension funds or foundations from investing in "any entity that supports or participates in the BDS movement." The bill extends this prohibition to all agencies of the Government of Ontario, any municipality and any local board: if this bill passes, none of these agencies can enter into a contract with an entity or individual that supports BDS. And, just to be desperately clear, the act explicitly states "No  college or university shall support or participate in the BDS movement." If any of these elements of the act are violated, the Lieutenant-Governor has in his power to enforce consequences. So: it's illegal to sanction Israel in Ontario, but it's legal to sanction Ontarians who believe Israel should be sanctioned. [...] This is the face of the modern Red Scare. It's a direct and indirect attack on reasonable debate under the guise of rooting out something that all people should oppose: anti-Semitism. Under no circumstances should this legislation pass. Read more - Lire plusInterview With BDS Co-Founder Omar Barghouti: Banned by Israel From Traveling, Threatened With Worse |
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Justice For Salim Alaradi And Others Arbitrarily Detained In UAE
The Huffington Post 18/05/2016 - Lawyers like me don't often come across cases that impact the world. Such opportunities are incredibly rare, but every once in a while we end up taking a case that represents much more than the sum of its legal parts. I became the lead defence counsel for several men of Libyan origin who were disappeared by the United Arab Emirates' (UAE) State Security Service (SSS) in 2014. I knew at the time that our position was a just one, but I didn't realize how much the fate of my clients would impact the conduct and  reputation of nations. [...] Tireless campaigning by family members and other advocates has resulted in global awareness of this case, prompting organizations and bodies like Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the UN Human Rights Council to issue explicit condemnations against the UAE SSS's inhumane behaviour. This international exposure, which includes coverage by just about every mainstream media outlet one can think of, has certainly gotten the prosecution's attention. [...] The whole process has been distressing and draining, and I've tried to keep silent as the leader of our defence team. It's been tough, having witnessed the kind of pain and trauma that such a blatant violation of basic human dignity inflicts. It's time for this dark episode to come to a close and for Salim, Kamal and Mohamed to be reunited with their families. Read more - Lire plusTime for Egypt to allow Khaled al-Qazzaz to return home |
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French judge orders terror accused Diab's release
Ottawa Citizen 17/05/2016 - In a surprise move, a French judge has ordered that Ottawa academic Hassan Diab be released from jail while an investigation into his alleged involvement in a 1980 Paris terrorist attack continues. But prosecutors, apparently intent on seeing Diab back behind bars, have filed an appeal that is due to be heard early next week. The Lebanese-born Canadian was  released late Saturday and has communicated numerous times via Skype with his wife, Rania Tfaily, and their two children, Jena, 3, and 16-month-old son Jad. After what amounted to house arrest in Ottawa and incarceration for the past 18 months in Paris, Tfaily says her husband has been feeling disoriented. "This is the first time he has been able to walk outside alone for eight years," she told Postmedia Tuesday. Read more - Lire plus |
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Monia Mazigh: Canada's "No-Fly List" Highlights A Need For Political Courage
The Huffington Post 13/05/2016 - Now that this bilateral working group on the no-fly list is up and running, it would be crucial that a redress system should be implemented as soon as possible. A redress process that is strong and reliable is  necessary. A redress process that first would allow all the kids affected by these senseless measures to remove their names and travel freely with no hassle. But moreover, the redress process should be open for all Canadians who have been denied traveling. These Canadians need to know the reasons behind such listing and should be able to challenge these decisions. The Minister shouldn't have the discretionary judgment to keep any Canadian on such list, as it is the case today. Read more - Lire plusFederal judge assails Transport Canada rationale for no-fly list secrecyTime to ground no-fly lists |
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Healthcare providers urge Ontario to end immigration detention
The Toronto Star 18/05/2016 - A group of 130 physicians, nurses and healthcare providers signed a petition sent Monday to Community Safety and Correctional Services Minister Yasir Naqvi after a string of recent deaths involving immigration detainees, including one over the weekend in a facility in Edmonton. "These people are not charged with any crime but sometimes held indefinitely in dire circumstances and immigration detention is  becoming more routine," said Dr. Michaela Beder, a psychiatrist at St. Michael's Hospital. "People were unaware of this because there's so little information from officials on when and how people died. We are shocked this is happening. We are calling for an ombudsman and more oversight, and an end of transfers of detainees from federal immigration holding centres to provincial jails." In a brief news release, the Canada Border Services Agency said a 24-year-old detainee died Saturday in Alberta and an investigation is underway. However, the agency refused to reveal the deceased man's identity and nationality or whether his next of kin had been notified. Read more - Lire plusL'ONU réclame la « fin des détentions » de migrants en GrècePour la Cimade, « de nombreux médecins se livrent à un racket » auprès des migrants |
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Des métadonnées qui en disent long
Le Devoir 19/05/2016 - Les gouvernements devraient suspendre les programmes de collectes à des fins de surveillance des métadonnées produites par les téléphones dits intelligents de chaque citoyen désormais branché, estime un groupe de scientifiques de l'Université de Stanford, aux États-Unis. Étude en main, ils concluent que ces informations techniques liées à nos échanges en ligne permettent de dresser des profils beaucoup trop précis des habitudes de vie, des relations sociales, tout comme des préoccupations sociales ou personnelles des propriétaires de ces  téléphones, et ce, de manière contradictoire avec ce que prétendent les services de renseignement à travers le monde tout comme au Canada. Ces organismes profitent de cadres légaux favorisant la collecte de métadonnées et jurent ne pas pouvoir entrer dans l'intimité des gens sur la seule base de ces données techniques. « J'ai été étonné de la facilité avec laquelle nous avons réussi à obtenir des informations sensibles sur les gens », a résumé Patrick Mutchler, spécialiste en sécurité informatique et coauteur de cette analyse dont les détails viennent d'être publiés dans la revue savante Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Read more - Lire plus |
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Autres nouvelles - More news
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Action
Close the CANSEC Killer Weapons Bazaar: In the Name of the Children
Homes Not Bombs - Canada's largest annual weapons bazaar opens on May 25 in Ottawa. JOIN TWO ACTIONS: 1. Day of nonviolent action to close the most violent annual gathering in Canada. Wednesday, May 25, 7:30 am to 1 pm, EY Centre, 4899 Uplands Drive, Ottawa Facebook eventOur National Coordinator Monia Mazigh will be speaking. 2. War Criminals Welcoming Walk, May 24, 5-7 pm. Starting point: York and Sussex (Ottawa, Byward Market area) Facebook event  The world's worst human rights violators, including the U.S., U.K., and the beheading regime of Saudi Arabia, will be there. Will you? In addition to welcoming the world's leading weapons manufacturers, CANSEC will also host companies that profit from border controls, militarization of police forces, refugee interdiction, the prison-industrial complex, and mass surveillance. It's a toxic gathering celebrating repression, racism, and war. Website
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Action
Sign the Voices-Voix Declaration!
Voices-Voix - "We believe that to protect rights and promote a healthy environment for debate, dissent, diversity and democracy, Canada needs transformative change to our laws, institutions, priorities, and political culture. The federal government must mainstream human rights across  all of its policies and programs and honor its commitments under international law. We must create conditions that ensure social justice and allow all Canadians to enjoy their rights, from access to basic needs such as food, water and shelter and a safe, sustainable environment, to exercising their freedoms of liberty, expression and association."
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Event
The Rule of Law in an Age of Fear: A talk with Dennis Edney, Omar Khadr's lawyer
This event, presented by ICLMG, InterPares and Octopus Books, is free and open to everyone.  When: Saturday, June 4, 2016, 4-6pm Where: Octopus Books, 251 Bank Street, 2nd floor, Ottawa What: Dennis Edney will speak about Omar Khadr's case and the climate of fear surrounding the war on terror and how it has affected and continues to negatively affect human rights, due process, and the rule of law. More detailsFacebook event
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Amnistie internationale - En juillet 2014, l'avocat spécialiste des droits humains Waleed Abu Al Khair a été condamné à 15 ans d'emprisonnement après des années de harcèlement, d'arrestations, de menaces et de procès. Au travers de ses activités  professionnelles, cet homme dénonçait les atteintes aux droits humains en Arabie saoudite. Waleed Abu Al Khair représente bon nombre de militants pacifiques, y compris son beau-frère Raif Badawi, blogueur emprisonné et condamné à 1 000 coups de fouet.
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ICLMG - Canada's numerous national security agencies - including CSEC, CSIS, the RCMP and CBSA - have inadequate or simply no oversight or review mechanisms. This has led to human rights violations such as the rendition to torture of Canadiancitizens Maher Arar,
Abdullah Almalki, Ahmad El-Maati and Muayyed Nurredin, among others. In 2006, Justice O'Connor concluded the Arar Commission with several recommendations to prevent such atrocities from happening again: Canadian national security agencies must be subjected to robust, integrated and comprehensive oversight and review. Years have passed and the federal government has yet to implement the recommendations.
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Action
Stop stingray surveillance!
OpenMedia - Stingrays (also known as "IMSI-catchers") are surveillance devices that can suck up every piece of sensitive, personal info in our cell phones. Every call, email, and text - our most intimate moments. You don't have to do anything wrong to be a victim. Stingrays CAN'T target one  person. They CAN vacuum up an entire neighbourhood, or up to 10,000 people's private data at once. We know they're being used in countries including the U.S. and Australia, and other governments are fighting to keep their use a secret. We must rein this in. Tell law-makers: It's time to put a stop to invasive Stingray cellphone surveillance.
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Action
Free Huseyin Celil
Amnesty International - Huseyin has been in prison for 10 years after an unfair trial.  Take action now to ensure that Huseyin is not subject to another 10 years of unfair treatment.
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Action
PM Trudeau: Call on the UAE to free Canadian citizen Salim Alaradi now!
ICLMG - Salim Alaradi, a Canadian citizen and father of 5 young children, has been detained without charge in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)  since August 2014. We are also worried that he was tortured. His health is deteriorating quickly as his family has informed us this week. Write to Prime Minister Trudeau to urge him to call on the UAE to free Salim Alaradi now!
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Action
Let Khaled leave Egypt!
Free Khaled Al-Qazzaz - Write to your MP to ask them to urge the Egyptian authorities to remove the travel ban on Canadian resident Khaled  Al-Qazzaz so he can finally be free after being detained without charges for a year and a half and released since January 2015 but prevented from leaving the country.
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Les opinions exprimées ne reflètent pas nécessairement les positions de la CSILC - The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the positions of ICLMG
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The News Digest is ICLMG's weekly publication of news articles, events, calls to action and much more regarding national security, anti-terrorism, and civil liberties. The ICLMG is a national coalition of 43 Canadian civil society organizations that was established in the aftermath of the September, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States. +++
La revue de l'actualité est notre publication hebdomadaire de nouvelles, d'évènements, d'appels à l'action, et beaucoup plus, entourant la sécurité nationale, la lutte au terrorisme, et les libertés civiles. La CSILC est une coalition nationale de 43 organisations de la société civile canadienne qui a été créée suite aux attentats terroristes de septembre 2001 aux États-Unis.
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RCMP and CSIS for a long time so this sort of thing is bound to happen again, especially with new powers provided by C-51; how many more scandals do we need to realize it's not a question of "rogue" agents or "bad apples" but a systemic problem and we need stronger and independent oversight and review for our national security agencies.
