Plus 1 for Harper - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

percy · 10-06-2006, 08:58 PM

Harper, upset me with the way he handled the whole Israeli/Lebanon War event by calling the response by the Israeli army proportional.

I expected a little more objectivity than that.

Currently both Israeli soldiers are still POW, negotiations between the Israeli's and Hesbollah ( oh no, America's allies dealing with terrorists

) are ongoing.

And now Lebanon is demolished and we the collective world have to pay for it's rebuilding. Well almost everyone.

Two soldiers are still prisoners. What was gained and what was lost

I espect more from my leader.

But Harper is doing good now by protesting the states regarding the Arar fiasco. It will be fruitless since the Canadian agencies tipped off the Americans, but the initiative was there. Bad operations all around.

I just hope Harper means it and isnt trying to dupe us all.

But whats the worst thing that can happen? He loses votes.

I think it's about time Mahar Arar gets all (or most) of the answers to his nightmare answered.

Your thoughts are welcomed

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Canada formally protests to U.S. over deported man
Fri Oct 6, 5:55 PM

By Jeffrey Jones

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Canada will formally protest to the United States over the case of a Canadian man deported to Syria by U.S. agents after he was accused of being connected with terrorist activity, Prime Minister Stephen Harper told President Bush on Friday.

Software engineer Maher Arar was arrested in New York in September 2002 and deported to Syria, where he says he was repeatedly tortured. He was released a year later.

Canadian Foreign Minister Peter MacKay was due to send a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Friday to protest U.S. officials' actions in the case, as recommended after a high-level inquiry, Harper said.

"What I would like to see is, obviously, the United States government come clean with its version of events, to acknowledge, I would hope, the deficiencies and the inappropriate conduct that occurred in this case, particularly vis a vis interrelations with the Canadian government," he told reporters.

In a telephone conversation, Bush expressed concerns about the case and said he would reply to the letter, Harper said.

Ottawa's official inquiry into the affair put much of the blame on Canadian police, who wrongly told U.S. border agents that Arar was an Islamic extremist. But inquiry head Justice Dennis O'Connor also urged Ottawa to formally protest to both Syria and the United States over the way they had treated Arar, a Canadian citizen who was born in Syria.

Arar was arrested during a stopover in New York while he was returning home to Canada from a vacation.

Harper said he wanted commitments from the United States that such an incident would not be repeated and that government officials would "communicate honestly," especially since both countries had pledged to co-operate in anti-terror efforts.

The prime minister's right-wing Conservatives, who won the January 23 election, campaigned on a promise to repair relations with the United States that had become strained under the previous Liberal government.

Bush is unpopular with many Canadians and the protest may help deflect opposition complaints that Harper is too close to the U.S. president.

Still, during a ceremony in Calgary late Thursday, in which Harper was given an award by the Woodrow Wilson International Center, Bush delivered a tribute to the prime minister by video, calling him a "friend of America."

The Arar case was one of several topics in the conversation with Bush on Friday, Harper said. The two leaders also discussed the conflict in Afghanistan and the humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region of Sudan.

(Additional reporting by David Ljunggren

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/reuters/c...canada_usa_col

Leto · 10-07-2006, 04:26 AM

I'm with you. However, I wonder how strong the protest can be, knowing the culpability of our own (Mounties) behaviour.

Ace_O_Spades · 10-07-2006, 09:12 AM

this was long overdue. It represents a failure both on the previous Liberal gov't for not doing enough at the time and Harper waiting to use it as posturing for a spring election.

10-06-2006, 08:58 PM	#1 (permalink)
percy Addict	Plus 1 for Harper Harper, upset me with the way he handled the whole Israeli/Lebanon War event by calling the response by the Israeli army proportional. I expected a little more objectivity than that. Currently both Israeli soldiers are still POW, negotiations between the Israeli's and Hesbollah ( oh no, America's allies dealing with terrorists ) are ongoing. And now Lebanon is demolished and we the collective world have to pay for it's rebuilding. Well almost everyone. Two soldiers are still prisoners. What was gained and what was lost I espect more from my leader. But Harper is doing good now by protesting the states regarding the Arar fiasco. It will be fruitless since the Canadian agencies tipped off the Americans, but the initiative was there. Bad operations all around. I just hope Harper means it and isnt trying to dupe us all. But whats the worst thing that can happen? He loses votes. I think it's about time Mahar Arar gets all (or most) of the answers to his nightmare answered. Your thoughts are welcomed ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Canada formally protests to U.S. over deported man Fri Oct 6, 5:55 PM By Jeffrey Jones CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Canada will formally protest to the United States over the case of a Canadian man deported to Syria by U.S. agents after he was accused of being connected with terrorist activity, Prime Minister Stephen Harper told President Bush on Friday. Software engineer Maher Arar was arrested in New York in September 2002 and deported to Syria, where he says he was repeatedly tortured. He was released a year later. Canadian Foreign Minister Peter MacKay was due to send a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Friday to protest U.S. officials' actions in the case, as recommended after a high-level inquiry, Harper said. "What I would like to see is, obviously, the United States government come clean with its version of events, to acknowledge, I would hope, the deficiencies and the inappropriate conduct that occurred in this case, particularly vis a vis interrelations with the Canadian government," he told reporters. In a telephone conversation, Bush expressed concerns about the case and said he would reply to the letter, Harper said. Ottawa's official inquiry into the affair put much of the blame on Canadian police, who wrongly told U.S. border agents that Arar was an Islamic extremist. But inquiry head Justice Dennis O'Connor also urged Ottawa to formally protest to both Syria and the United States over the way they had treated Arar, a Canadian citizen who was born in Syria. Arar was arrested during a stopover in New York while he was returning home to Canada from a vacation. Harper said he wanted commitments from the United States that such an incident would not be repeated and that government officials would "communicate honestly," especially since both countries had pledged to co-operate in anti-terror efforts. The prime minister's right-wing Conservatives, who won the January 23 election, campaigned on a promise to repair relations with the United States that had become strained under the previous Liberal government. Bush is unpopular with many Canadians and the protest may help deflect opposition complaints that Harper is too close to the U.S. president. Still, during a ceremony in Calgary late Thursday, in which Harper was given an award by the Woodrow Wilson International Center, Bush delivered a tribute to the prime minister by video, calling him a "friend of America." The Arar case was one of several topics in the conversation with Bush on Friday, Harper said. The two leaders also discussed the conflict in Afghanistan and the humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region of Sudan. (Additional reporting by David Ljunggren http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/reuters/c...canada_usa_col

10-07-2006, 09:12 AM	#3 (permalink)
Ace_O_Spades The Death Card Location: EH!?!?	this was long overdue. It represents a failure both on the previous Liberal gov't for not doing enough at the time and Harper waiting to use it as posturing for a spring election. __________________ Feh.

10-07-2006, 04:26 AM	#2 (permalink)
Leto Junkie Location: The Danforth	I'm with you. However, I wonder how strong the protest can be, knowing the culpability of our own (Mounties) behaviour.