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Canadian Torture Charges Against Bush Rejected – LAW Promises Another Appeal
In a brief judgment today, Madam Justice Deborah Satanove of the Supreme Court of British Columbia rejected an appeal by the Canadian-based Lawyers Against the War (LAW) against the staying of torture charges laid against President George W. Bush last year. The judgment, which came after three weeks of deliberation but was less than five pages in length, declared the appeal "an abuse of process". Relying on a contested nine-word passage in the transcript of the secret hearing held last year, Judge Satanove declared that the real intentions of LAW were "to use the criminal procedure as a forum to express political views". According to the court, the passage could be read as a disavowal by LAW of any intention to seek the issuance of a summons or warrant against the US President. The judge ignored all the other arguments on both sides of the case.
LAW immediately declared that it would appeal the decision.
"We can't fathom how the transcript could be read the way the judge read it," said LAW Co-Chair Gail Davidson in Vancouver. "We stated clearly at both hearings that we are seeking to have Bush put on trial. What's more incredible is how, so far, two Canadian courts have resolutely refused to let the evidence be heard in open court so that justice can take its course. Instead, the government and the courts keep raising trivial technical obstacles. What's at stake here is no longer just Bush's guilt, but the credibility of the rule of law in Canada and our commitment to enforce our own laws and the international treaties Canada has signed that ban torture."
In Toronto, LAW's other Co-Chair, Professor Michael Mandel added, "It isn't over until you've run out of appeals, and we've got plenty left. We have no choice but to keep going, because American torture is a reality, not just of the past, but also of the present -- and the future unless the law is enforced and Bush is brought to trial."
For more background on the case, see www.bushprosecution.org
Contacts :
Professor Michael Mandel: MMandel@osgoode.yorku.ca
Gail Davidson; law@portal.ca
Shahram Vahdany: shahramvahdany@mwcnews.net
Tel: (604) 877-0414
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Judge SATANove? This article and the Judges name gives one pause to wonder if she's in cahoots with the OTHER ANTI CHRIST; Bush.
I knew Deborah Satanove when she was a lowly law student in Vancouver, British Columbia back in the time beyond, and I was working at the same firm, and I can honestly say that having watched her morph from a highly competent lawyer to a respected Supreme Court Justice she isn't likely playing politics. From my personal political point of view I agree with the Canadians (I'm still a Canadian citizen though I now live in the US) and know and respect Gail Davidson, counsel for the Plaintiffs, and I heartily agree with the sentiments expressed by said plaintiffs in this particular lawsuit, as do my Canadian children, - heck what country wants to welcome war criminals onto their turf? But the law is the law, and this is definitely politics.
Bush is undoubtedly a war criminal, though I doubt he is intelligent enough to realize this. And many Canadians certainly view him in such a light. However, from a political standpoint its tough to stand up to the bully who lives next door, particularly when this is the guy who buys so much of your stuff, even though he tries to screw you down on the price (see NAFTA rules on soft-wood lumber which the US has repeatedly violated).
I do believe that since the world view of the United States is so polluted (I still have family in England who are revolted at what this country is doing) public opinion, both inside and outside the US will eventually bring sufficient pressure to bear that this administration will be impeached and stripped of its power. And before the 2006 elections too.