Abdelrazik launches constitutional challenge – Canadian on UN blacklist for alleged links to terrorism claims Ottawa violated his rights
Abousfian Abdelrazik endured six years of forced exile in Sudan before a Federal Court judge ordered Ottawa to allow him to return to Canada
By Paul Koring
A constitutional challenge contends the Canadian government can’t strip a citizen of his rights, seize his assets and make it a crime to employ him just because the UN Security Council blacklists him as an al-Qaeda operative.
The case, launched today by Abousfian Abdelrazik along with a coalition of rights groups, asks the Federal Court to strike down as unconstitutional Canadian regulations that impose sweeping sanctions on anyone on the UN list. It also claims Mr. Abdelrazik’s listing was a result of confessions extracted from Abu Zubaydah, an al-Qaeda leader tortured by U.S. counterterrorism agents. “Imposing sanctions on Abousfian Abdelrazik based on information derived from torture violates customary international law,” the suit contends.
“We don’t believe the UN blacklist trumps the Canadian constitution,” said Carmen Cheung, counsel for the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association, one of the rights groups joining Mr. Abdelrazik in the court action. The blacklist, she said, “violates fundamental human rights,’’ because those on it have no right to know their accusers or to challenge the accusations against them. “There’s a complete absence of due process,’’ Ms. Cheung said.
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Tags: Abousfian Abdelrazik, BCCLA, Canadian government, Civil Rights, Federal Court, Human Rights, UN
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