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From The Globe and Mail
Terror suspect given bail with strict rules
MARINA JIMÉNEZ
Mohamed Harkat, a suspected al-Qaeda member imprisoned for more than three years on a security certificate, has been released on bail, but must wear an electronic monitoring device and have his phone calls intercepted, according to a Federal Court decision released yesterday.
The 36-year-old Ottawa man, accepted in Canada as a refugee in 1997, would pose a threat to national security if released, but the strict bail conditions neutralize such a threat, Madam Justice Eleanor Dawson ruled.
Mr. Harkat, an Algerian native, is the second of five terrorism suspects being held on a security certificate to be released from prison. Adil Charkaoui, a Moroccan who is accused of attending al-Qaeda terrorism camps in Afghanistan, was released on bail in Montreal last year.
Three of the suspects are challenging the constitutionality of the certificate process, which allows Canadian immigration authorities to detain foreign nationals they suspect are a security threat.
The process is controversial because portions of the evidence against the suspects are secret and reviewed only by a Federal Court judge.
The Supreme Court will hear the legal challenge in June.
Last year, Judge Dawson upheld the security certificate against Mr. Harkat as reasonable based largely on evidence that remains secret to him, his lawyers and the public.
In yesterday's ruling, she found that Mr. Harkat lied under oath when he denied supporting Islamic extremists, denied having been in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and claimed not to know Abu Zubaida -- al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden's chief lieutenant.
"Unchecked, Mr. Harkat would be in a position to recommence contact with members of the Islamic extremist network. . . . Any terms or conditions for release must be based upon something other than Mr. Harkat's assumed good faith or trustworthiness," she noted in her decision.
Mr. Harkat's supporters must post bail of $35,000, and he must live with his French-Canadian wife and her mother and remain in the house or the yard at all times.
\ He is permitted to leave the premises for 12 hours a week, and must specify where he is going and be accompanied by his wife or mother-in-law.
Mr. Harkat must agree to have his phone conversations monitored, and may not use a wireless computer, cellphone, fax machine or other electronic device. The Canadian Border Services Agency will monitor his land-based phone line, and he must allow CBSA officers access to his residence at any time. He may not converse in Arabic.
Paul Copeland, Mr. Harkat's lawyer, hailed the bail decision as a victory, and said important issues are at stake in June's Supreme Court case. "The case is significant as it will determine whether Canada follows the lawless American approach on national security . . . or creates a uniquely Canadian path on national security in conformity with the principles of fundamental justice and international law," he said.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service contends Mr. Harkat is an Islamic extremist and collaborator with Mr. bin Laden's terrorist network. The spy service, which watched Mr. Harkat for five years before his December, 2002, arrest, also argues that he supports Afghan, Pakistani and Chechen extremists.
This was Mr. Harkat's second bail application. His lawyer argued that the federal government has failed to move its case forward and that his client will be tortured or killed if deported to his homeland of Algeria.
Terror suspect given bail with strict rules
MARINA JIMÉNEZ
Mohamed Harkat, a suspected al-Qaeda member imprisoned for more than three years on a security certificate, has been released on bail, but must wear an electronic monitoring device and have his phone calls intercepted, according to a Federal Court decision released yesterday.
The 36-year-old Ottawa man, accepted in Canada as a refugee in 1997, would pose a threat to national security if released, but the strict bail conditions neutralize such a threat, Madam Justice Eleanor Dawson ruled.
Mr. Harkat, an Algerian native, is the second of five terrorism suspects being held on a security certificate to be released from prison. Adil Charkaoui, a Moroccan who is accused of attending al-Qaeda terrorism camps in Afghanistan, was released on bail in Montreal last year.
Three of the suspects are challenging the constitutionality of the certificate process, which allows Canadian immigration authorities to detain foreign nationals they suspect are a security threat.
The process is controversial because portions of the evidence against the suspects are secret and reviewed only by a Federal Court judge.
The Supreme Court will hear the legal challenge in June.
Last year, Judge Dawson upheld the security certificate against Mr. Harkat as reasonable based largely on evidence that remains secret to him, his lawyers and the public.
In yesterday's ruling, she found that Mr. Harkat lied under oath when he denied supporting Islamic extremists, denied having been in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and claimed not to know Abu Zubaida -- al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden's chief lieutenant.
"Unchecked, Mr. Harkat would be in a position to recommence contact with members of the Islamic extremist network. . . . Any terms or conditions for release must be based upon something other than Mr. Harkat's assumed good faith or trustworthiness," she noted in her decision.
Mr. Harkat's supporters must post bail of $35,000, and he must live with his French-Canadian wife and her mother and remain in the house or the yard at all times.
\ He is permitted to leave the premises for 12 hours a week, and must specify where he is going and be accompanied by his wife or mother-in-law.
Mr. Harkat must agree to have his phone conversations monitored, and may not use a wireless computer, cellphone, fax machine or other electronic device. The Canadian Border Services Agency will monitor his land-based phone line, and he must allow CBSA officers access to his residence at any time. He may not converse in Arabic.
Paul Copeland, Mr. Harkat's lawyer, hailed the bail decision as a victory, and said important issues are at stake in June's Supreme Court case. "The case is significant as it will determine whether Canada follows the lawless American approach on national security . . . or creates a uniquely Canadian path on national security in conformity with the principles of fundamental justice and international law," he said.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service contends Mr. Harkat is an Islamic extremist and collaborator with Mr. bin Laden's terrorist network. The spy service, which watched Mr. Harkat for five years before his December, 2002, arrest, also argues that he supports Afghan, Pakistani and Chechen extremists.
This was Mr. Harkat's second bail application. His lawyer argued that the federal government has failed to move its case forward and that his client will be tortured or killed if deported to his homeland of Algeria.
