[antiwar-van] News And Events

[No One is Illegal-Vancouver]

1) UPDATE ON SKWELKWEK'WELT TRIALS
2) SUPPORT JUSTIN IN TRIAL
3) CSIS: SPYING IN CANADA



Secwepemc Appeals Dismissed
(Skwelkwekwelt, Secwepemculecw, November 12, 2004)

Judge Frank Cole dismissed the appeals by ten Secwepemc Elders, women, and
youth who blockaded the road into Skwelkwekwelt in July and December,
2001.  A sentencing hearing will be held in mid-December.  Some of the
people could face upto 45 days in jail.

The roadblocks were set up to inform residents, tourists, and visitors to
Sun Peaks that the resort is built on stolen land and that the Secwepemc
oppose all development which is inflicting irreparable damage to their
homeland and way of life. The Secwepemc maintain ownership of all land
within Secwepemculecw (land of the Secwepemc).

Since the roadblocks and subsequent charges, the Secwepemc have been
restricted from use and enjoy of the land at Skwelkwekwelt (Sun Peaks). 
The no-go zones, inflicted by the court – some up to 10 kilometers from
Sun Peaks - have severely restricted their liberty and freedom on their
traditional lands.

This latest court action reaffirms the fact that the Secwepemc, or any
other indigenous Nation, will never get a fair trial in any court in
Canada.  We know that defenses used by lawyers – color of right,
injunctions, and judicial reviews will never be favorable for indigenous
Peoples.  The only solutions are:

· to continue exercising our Secwepemc Title and Rights on the land · to
uphold our sacred responsibilities to protect our lands;
· challenge the jurisdiction of provincial and federal perceived authority
and ownership of our lands
· and seek international intervention in the restoration of our stolen lands

We look forward to all fellow Secwepemc and supporters who will help us
achieve these solutions. For more information or how you can help contact:

Janice Billy: jrbilly at mail.ocis.net
Art Manuel: amanuel at telus.net
Arnie Jack: cyber_seklep at hotmail.com
Kanahus: nymcommunication at hotmail.com

Across the country, various support groups continue to support the Boycott
Campaign Against Sun Peaks and Delta Hotels through various actions.


======================================================


From: prisoner support

Vancouver Jury Trial Over Botched Deportation Begins

Monday, November 15. 2004

Justin Goodman's jury trial began today at the Supreme Court in downtown
Vancouver, relating to Immigration Canada's attempt to deport Kobra
Nateghi and her son, Hassan Esmat, almost two years ago.

Kobra and Hassan had fled Iran as refugees facing torture and death. But
Kobra escaped from the Vancouver Airport on January 21 of 2003, in the
confusion of a demonstration held by her supporters against her
deportation. Justin Goodman was arrested after the demonstration and
charged with assisting escape from lawful custody, assault on a peace
officer, and obstructing of a peace officer. Kobra reportedly contacted
her lawyer, turned herself over to the police later that same night, and
was deported along with her son two days later.

Crown counsel called two witnesses today, and plans to call at least three
others over the course of the week.

Show up for any amount of time during the week-long trial to oppose
Canada's deportation of refugees and to support those who are criminally
charged for standing in solidarity with refugees.

10:00 a.m.
British Columbia Supreme Court
800 Smithe Street
Vancouver

Some background:

Kobra and Hassan were both been called in to an Immigration office in
Vancouver for a routine interview on January 17 of 2003, and were promptly
handcuffed and then moved to separate prisons. Vancouver members of the
International Federation of Iranian Refugees held a demonstration in
support of Kobra and Hassan at the Immigration office on January 20.

Hassan became very upset the next day, when he and his mother were put on
plane at the Vancouver Airport to be deported. The pilot refused to fly,
and Kobra and Hassan were removed from the aircraft. A commissionaire led
Kobra through the airport terminal, where they met a crowd of protesters
and Kobra escaped.

Canada is still deporting refugees to unsafe countries such as Iran.


======================================================

CSIS to spy on people in Canada

By COLIN FREEZE
>From Monday's Globe and Mail


Judges approve more than 99 per cent of the requests by CSIS to spy on
people in Canada, according to records obtained by The Globe and Mail.

While the government says espionage is one of its most intrusive powers,
records show that Federal Court judges almost never disagree with Canadian
Security Intelligence Service agents who ask for permission to take
extraordinary steps so they can discover more about suspected terrorists
or foreign spies.

CSIS officials say this speaks to the fact that they run a highly
disciplined spy service, whereas critics suggest judges are giving carte
blanche to intelligence operations. "What I would think is mostly the
courts rubber-stamp the requests," said defence lawyer Paul Copeland, who
has represented several clients accused of being national security
threats.

Intelligence-gathering warrants, described in Section 21 of the CSIS Act,
allow agents to intercept the communications of suspected terrorists or
foreign spies. The warrants also allow CSIS agents to take highly invasive
steps -- they can "enter any place" in order "to obtain access to any
thing," according to the law -- in the name of safeguarding national
security.

Because these spying powers are so vast, they require a high threshold to
exercise. Judges must be convinced that "other investigative procedures
have been tried and have failed" and "the urgency of the matter is such
that it would be impractical to carry out the investigation using only
other investigative procedures."

Yet the Federal Court is nearly always persuaded. Between 1993 and 2003,
CSIS filed warrant applications at a rate of between 200 and 300 a year
for a total of 2,544 applications.

Only 18 of these requests were rejected by the Federal Court, the last
denial occurring five years ago, according to records obtained by The
Globe under the Access to Information Act.

This means CSIS has succeeded in having its warrant applications approved
99.3 per cent of the time.

To people affiliated with CSIS, the success rate is less reflective of the
judicial rubber-stamping than of the service's strong internal vetting
procedures.

At a public commission this summer, Jack Hooper, a top CSIS official,
testified that acquiring warrants was a "very, very extensive" process
that involved double-checking facts, getting outside lawyers to review
them and then getting a federal minister to sign off on the application --
all before a Federal Court judge looked at it.

Michel Juneau Katsuya, a former CSIS agent who now acts as a consultant
for the Northgate Group in Ottawa, said the warrants represent "one of the
main investigative tools" used by the service, but they remain difficult
to acquire.

"You have to know what you're looking for, you have to know it's there and
you have to demonstrate to the magistrate that it's legitimate and it's
justified," he said. "It's not something that's going to be given easily
because you're actually breaking, technically, the law, if there is
something important that you need to acquire."

Each warrant is used to spy on either individual or group targets. There
are fixed time frames for the spying.



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No One is Illegal- Vancouver
noii-van at resist.ca
(604)682-3269 x 7149

The No One is Illegal campaign is in full confrontation with Canadian
colonial border policies, denouncing and taking action to combat racial
profiling of immigrants and refugees, detention and deportation policies,
and wage-slave conditions of migrant workers and non-status people.

We struggle for the right for our communities to maintain their
livelihoods and resist war, occupation and displacement, while building
alliances and supporting indigenous sisters and brothers also fighting
theft of land and displacement.