Afghan detainees still at risk: lawyer
Detainees handed over to Afghan authorities by Canadian soldiers still face a substantial risk of torture, a civil rights lawyer has told MPs.
Paul Champ, counsel for Amnesty International Canada and the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, said Wednesday he has seen no evidence to suggest torture in Afghan jails has ended.
While the Conservatives stall and the opposition sits on its hands. Why would the representative of Amnesty International Canada have any less credibility on this than government and military officials whose stories have already been undermined and contradicted?
Update:
According to Kady O'Malley the NDP's defence critic Jack Harris is going to table a motion concerning breach of parliamentary privilege this morning. O'Malley had reported in a previous post that the Bloc Québecois had already signaled support for it and we don't know about the Liberals. I guess we'll find out soon enough.
Almost instant additional up... oh the hell with it. Derek Lee beat Jack Harris to the punch. Go read Kady.
Note: If you're wondering why there appears to be a change in the commenting policy, please see The spammers made me do it.
Why would the representative of Amnesty International Canada have any less credibility on this than government and military officials whose stories have already been undermined and contradicted?
He doesn't, but so what? The opposition has said to the government that, in the end, they will not stand in its way to do as it wants. Harper could publicly execute Afghans in the House and the opposition would do nothing to stop it. Oh sure, they would be outraged!!!, but would do absolutely nothing about it. So I say again. Who cares if Champ is right? In Canada, right and wrong have lost all meaning.
See the update to the post.
If it is true, thank the Goddess. If it is true.
I will only think good thoughts about Jack Layton for ten whole minutes, if it is true.
It is true! Yippee!
Did you see Lukiwski's opening question about why it took so long for this privilege question to be raised in the Commons? Of all the bloody nerve. I don't know whether to laugh or scream.
It was still entirely predictable that the Conservatives would try to argue that the opposition was too long in putting the question forward since I believe issues of privilege are supposed to be raised in a timely fashion. Today's conservative movement has retired the concept of hypocrisy as it applies to their own actions. From what I've seen after reading around a bit, the Speaker thought the ploy was as lame as we all do.
I watched it on CPAC and the speaker said quite plainly that it was his idea to hold off on introducing the motion until it was clear what was going on with Iacobucci. So, he dismissed Lukiwski's argument out of hand.
Just came from Kady's site.
The first poster said: "Well its about time! Go Derek Lee. And Go Jack Harris" - but more important were the votes pro and anti ...... 162 supporting and 13 against.