Request to our supporters-please take action!

Lawyers Rights Watch Canada (LRWC) has written to Conservative M.P. Mark Strahl objecting to his reference to Omar Khadr as a “convicted terrorist” in May 8th statement in the House of Commons and repeated in a Twitter comment. Strahl, Andrew Scheer, and other Conservative politicians continue to defame and demonize Omar Khadr.

Please join LRWC by writing to gov officials listed at the end of the letter requesting:

1. Strahl’s immediate and unqualified retraction and apology for inaccurate remarks about Mr. Khadr.
2. That Canada fulfill its international legal obligation to fully redress the torture and other ill-treatment to which Canadian officials contributed during Omar Khadr’s unlawful detention in Guantanamo Bay prison.

Thank you!

The Free Omar Campaign

Here you can read LRWC’s excellent letter:

Canada: LRWC Objects to Strahl’s Statement Referring to Khadr as a “Convicted Terrorist” | Letter

Omar’s composure, eloquence, and standing ovation! on Radio Canada t.v. Sunday night, has resulted in a much-needed sea change in coverage by the mainstream media. In this article from the National Post, Omar’s words are highlighted-a rare opportunity for readers to hear from Omar himself.

OTTAWA — In his first major interview since an Alberta judge ruled his war crimes sentence has expired, a composed Omar Khadr appeared Sunday night on the ferociously popular Quebec talk show Tout le monde en parle.

Walking out to greet the Montreal studio audience in a blue-grey suit jacket, Khadr got a standing ovation, then settled in for a 14-minute chat during which he faced plenty of tough questions from host Guy A. Lepage.

Read the full article in the National Post here: Highlights of Omar Khadr’s appearance on Quebec’s most popular talk show

Tomorrow night (Sunday April 21) Quebec’s most popular televsion programme, “Tout le Monde en Parle”, will air an interview with Omar Khadr (8 p.m.EST) on Radio Canada.

Check listings in your area to tune in or follow this link: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/tele/tout-le-monde-en-parle/site/segments/entrevue/114788/omar-khadr-justice-liberte-enfant-soldat-guantanamo-tribunal

Ahmed Sahi’s excellent Opinion Piece (March 28th) in The Star:
“In this land, there is one authority that keeps the government of Canada accountable for its actions and upholds the highest standards of justice – and that authority is the Supreme Court of Canada.

On Canada’s treatment of Khadr and its utter violation of his rights and the injustice against him, the Supreme Court ruled that “Canada actively participated in a process contrary to its international human rights obligations and contributed to Khadr’s ongoing detention so as to deprive him of his right to liberty and security of the person.”

In summarizing the wrongs committed against Khadr, the Supreme Court said “the interrogation of a youth detained without access to counsel, to elicit statements about serious criminal charges while knowing that the youth had been subjected to sleep deprivation… offends the most basic Canadian standards about the treatment of detained youth suspects.”

All these facts should be brought to light for the public again, and the “polls” that some conservative pundits have so giddily referred to should be conducted with the public knowing what really happened to Khadr.

Armed with the right information, I think the majority of Canadians would agree that we as a country have finally gotten it right with Omar Khadr – even when many would speak loudly against it.”

Read the full opinion piece by Ahmed Sahi here: Finally getting it right on Omar Khadr | The Star

photo: Omar Khadr, next to Statue of Ivstitia (Justice) at the Supreme Court of Canada

At last.

Omar Khadr’s sentence is finished, Alberta judge rules. He is a free man now, after 17 years of injustice. A huge debt of gratitude to Omar’s lawyer, Nate Whitling, for years of steadfast defense. We also thank all those who have supported our campaign throughout the years.

CBC Edmonton made the commendable effort to interview three experts for today’s article on the judge’s decision to end Omar’s sentence <read article here>. Nate Whitling, Omar’s very determined and brilliant lawyer offers his perspective on the case, as does U. of Alberta professor Janice Williamson, editor of Omar Khadr, Oh Canada and member of Free Omar Khadr Now Campaign. Included too, is Audrey Macklin (Professor and Chair in Human Rights Law at U. of T.) who has written extensively on the illegality of Omar’s Guantanamo detention, charges and sentence. How refreshing to hear from those who help the Canadian public appreciate the injustice Omar has faced all these years.

Still left is the US appeal to overturn Omar’s Guantanamo ‘conviction’. The rule of law is strong.

Dear Member of the Media,

Please find attached an updated Factsheet on Omar Khadr prepared by the Free Omar Khadr Now advocacy group. This Factsheet is offered as a media resource in advance of Chief Justice Mary Moreau’s March 25 decision on whether Omar Khadr’s sentence will be expired. We hope the Factsheet will be helpful to journalists new to the story and to others who may have unwittingly incorporated inaccurate facts.

Several errors tend to be repeated in the media.

See, for example: “Omar Khadr pleaded guilty and was convicted of killing Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Speer, an American medic in the U.S. army, with a hand grenade in Afghanistan in 2002, when he was 15.”

• Error #1: The illegitimacy of the U.S. Military Commission convictions

The U.S. Military Commission has been discredited internationally - and, in 2008, by the US Supreme Court. These commissions are not properly constituted courts of law and therefore they are unable to legitimately sentence, convict or negotiate guilty pleas. Terms such as “convicted terrorist’, “war criminal” or “murderer” are inaccurate with reference to Omar Khadr.

In her April 2014 ruling, Chief Justice of Alberta Catherine Fraser said: “the evidence against Khadr would have been excluded in a Canadian court. The legal process under which Khadr was held and the evidence elicited from him have been found to have violated both the Charter and international human rights laws.”

• Error#2: Misidentifying Sgt. Speer, an active Delta Forces soldier, as medic
  

Some journalists describe Sgt. Speer as “an American medic in the U.S. army.” While he was training to be a medic, Sgt. Speer was deployed as an active Delta Forces soldier at the Afghan compound July 27, 2002.  Discredited journalistic sources such as Rebel Media commonly describe Sgt. Speer as a medic as did former PM Stephen Harper and Conservative Party officials.

The U.S. never charged Omar Khadr with killing a medic, a Geneva Conventions war crime. As Audrey Macklin, law professor and director of The Centre for Criminology and Sociological Studies at the University of Toronto, writes: “Sergeant Speer was not acting as a medic during the battle in which he was killed and he was not rushing to Mr. Khadr’s aid when he died. Not even the U.S. military prosecutors alleged this. Sgt. Speer’s death as a combatant, a tragic loss to his family and his country, was not a war crime.”

For more details of the firefight, you can read the testimony of another Delta Forces soldier who was present at the battle when Sgt Speer died.

The impact of misleading statements about Omar Khadr’s story perpetuates myths and propaganda about his case and misrepresents the rule of law. At this particular moment in history when white supremacist views are mobilized by proliferating groups, the Omar Khadr case can be a particularly charged issue.

Thanks especially to those of you who have worked to cover this long and complex story over many years.

Sincerely

Helen Sadowski and Janice Williamson
on behalf of the Free Omar Khadr Now Committee

Also see:

• Free Omar Khadr Now Campaign website
• Free Omar Khadr Now on Facebook
• “Khadr Case Resource Page,” Boris Laskin Library, University of Toronto
• Omar Khadr, Oh Canada, Janice Williamson, Ed. McGill-Queen’s UP, 2012

Judge to decide March 25

On March 25th Chief Justice Mary Moreau will hand down her decision whether or not the sentence imposed on Omar by the illegitimate Guantanamo process will be expired. Anyone who has followed the 17 years of abuse and injustice Omar has faced, will be anxiously awaiting the news that once again Canadian courts have ruled in his favour.

Read and watch here: Omar Khadr wants “war crimes” sentence expired; judge to decide March 25

Sam Morison, Omar Khadr’s pentagon-appointed lawyer, is returning to Edmonton, to offer a public lecture on Omar’s US appeal. For those who were unable to attend his previous talk, here is a link.

The talk offers excellent background to the legal issues and the nature of the military tribunals which operate outside civil and legal rights.

Attention to all Free Omar supporters in Edmonton!

Sam Morison, Omar Khadr’s pentagon-appointed lawyer, will discuss the constitutional issues that are being litigated in the Omar Khadr case: the scope of Congress’ authority to codify violations of the Law of Nations, and the application of the Ex Post Facto Clause.

Sam Morison: Attorney Samuel Morison from the US Department of Defense has practiced law for more than 20 years and is a nationally recognized expert on federal executive clemency and the restoration of civil rights. He is Omar Khadr`s U.S. Pentagon appointed lawyer and leads the appeal against Omar’s Guantanamo military “conviction”.