Supreme Court Strikes Down Security Certificates
Posted February 23, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
In a unanimous verdict, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down the anti-terror security certificates system used by Ottawa.
The justices involved in the 9-0 decision all agreed that the system, which allows the federal government to detain and deport terror suspects not born in Canada, was a violation of this country’s Charter of Rights.
The judgement won’t take effect for a year, however, which allows Parliament to come up with a new law deemed constitutional.
A lawyer representing terror suspect Mohammed Harkat, one of three involved in fighting the security certificates, said the decision was exactly what they were hoping for. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) alleges the men, from Morocco, Syria and Algeria, have ties to terrorist groups, including al-Qaida, but they deny any such connection.
Ottawa claims the system is important in preventing the spread of terrorism and in protecting the safety of Canadians.
But Barbara Jackman, a lawyer representing detainee Hasan Almrei, contends this decision won’t affect national security.
“I don’t think you ever diminsh the security of the country when you provide a fair hearing,” Jackman said. “It doesn’t in any way at all jeopardize national security interests of Canada.
“If anything, it strengthens our democracy.”
Critics of the system complained that non-citizens could be deported to countries based on secret intelligence presented in private hearings. They also mentioned that some suspects spend years in jail as they wait for their cases to chug through the legal system.
