If you live in the Toronto area, come out this Saturday, July 26, for the Bring Omar Khadr back to Canada! rally. The rally is jointly sponsored by the Toronto Coalition to Stop the War, the Canadian Arab Federation and the Muslim Unity Group.
Tell Stephen Harper:
Bring Omar Khadr back to Canada!
Rally & march
Saturday, July 26, 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
U.S. Consulate
360 University Avenue*
(north of Queen West, east side of University)
TTC: Osgoode or St. Patrick
Canadian citizen Omar Khadr is the only Western national left in Guantanamo Bay, and the first child-soldier to be prosecuted in more than a hundred years. Khadr was only 15 years-old when he was captured by US forces in Afghanistan and later transported to the infamous US prison where he has now spent more than a quarter of his life. Khadr faces trial by US military tribunal in October 2008.
Recently released video footage reveals the kind of mistreatment that Khadr has experienced in Guantanamo Bay, where the US has been accused of practicing torture on detainees. Other reports show that Khadr was subjected to extreme forms of sleep deprivation, a form of torture, including a practice called the "frequent flyer program" in which he was woken every three hours and moved to a different cell for 24 hours a day over a three-week period.
Worse still, court documents reveal that the Canadian government was aware of the abuse suffered by Khadr at the hands of US authorities yet continued to assure the Canadian public that he was being well treated.
The fact that Omar Khadr is still being held in Guantanamo Bay is a national disgrace, and an international embarrassment for all Canadians. Despite the growing evidence of Khadr's mistreatment, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has shamefully refused to bring Khadr back to Canada. Instead, Harper has said he supports a US military trial for Khadr, and will not seek his release from Guantanamo Bay.
Join us on July 26 to tell Stephen Harper: "Bring Omar Khadr back to Canada!" Demonstrate your opposition to our government's decision to abandon a Canadian citizen in Guantanamo Bay, and show your support for civil liberties and international law.
* After the opening rally at the U.S. Consulate, the demonstration will march past CSIS headquarters on Front Street West, and will conclude at Simcoe Park, on the east side of the CBC Broadcast Centre.
If you can, go.
If you can do more, the Coalition needs volunteers to help make the rally a success. If you can attend a volunteer meeting on Friday night, July 25, from 6:00 to 8:00, email stopthewar@sympatico.ca. The meeting will be held at Trinity-St. Paul's Centre, 427 Bloor Street West.
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