Herewith Paul Fromm's write-up about Ernst Zundel's
continuing detention in solitary confinement - a cell where pens are
forbidden as "dangerous weapons", where the light is kept on 24
hours a day, where strip searches are ordered after a friend's visit behind
bullet-proof glass or even a telephone call, where to receive a pillow calls
for a ministerial okay, and where tap water mixed with a dash of orange
juice to keep the blood pressure down is called "self-medication"
and, hence, disallowed:
Dear Free Speech Supporter:
Welcome to the Northern Banana Republic, Absurdistan,
where an autocratic regime keeps political dissidents in jail. With Irwin
Cotler, a militant Zionist as Justice Minister, and federal politicians
massively lobbied by outspoken Zionist groups that are sworn enemies of
free speech, Canada is increasingly a place where political dissent can
land you in prison.
It's no surprise. Although he had promised his decision a
week earlier, on September 22, Mr. Justice Pierre Blais announced that
Canada's most famous political prisoner Ernst Zundel must spend another
six months in solitary confinement. You see, the lifelong pacifist who has
never been charged, much less convicted of a crime of violence in Canada
or anywhere else, is accused by Canada's corrupt Canadian Security and
Intelligence Service (CSIS) of being a "terrorist" and,
therefore, a threat to national security.
Judge Blais has been so hopelessly hostile to Mr. Zundel
and his several lawyers that the decision was a foregone conclusion. After
all, he had said, during Mr. Zundel's testimony in July 2003, that he
didn't believe him. On January 21, he had concluded that "there are
reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Zundel continues to be a danger to
national security or to the safety of any person" and, therefore,
ordered his continued incarceration.
Mr. Zundel has not, of course, been charged with any
crime. In his January 21 decision, Mr. Justice Blais had, in fact, ruled
on the substance of the case: whether it was "reasonable" for
the ministers to sign the CSIS national security certificate last May 1.
Well, if there are reasonable grounds to believe Mr. Zundel is a danger to
national security, it would seem that the judge has already made up his
mind.
None of this is surprising. Pierre Blais was the former
boss of CSIS. In 1989, as Solicitor-General in the Mulroney government, he
was in charge of CSIS, interestingly, at the very time they were knee deep
in dirty tricks spying on the fledgling Reform Party and the Heritage
Front. In November. Mr. Zundel's then lead counsel Douglas H,. Christie
made a motion calling on Judge Blais to recuse himself. He refused. More.
recently, on September 14, Peter Lindsay, Mr. Zundel's current lead
counsel, made a similar motion now based on a ponderous record of biased
decisions against Mr. Zundel.
Judge Blais's decision consigning the 65-year-old German
publisher to another six months in jail -- a form of indefinite detention
-- is a masterpiece of deception. Judge Blais criticized Mr. Zundel and
Mr. Lindsay for not clarifying Mr. Zundel's relationship with a host of
people, linked to him by guilt-by-association in the report filed with the
certificate. Mr. Zundel, in testimony in July 2003 and this spring did
clarify these relationships, such as they were.
Now Judge Blais seems to suggest that Mr. Zundel should be
further punished for his criticism of CSIS's hostility toward him:
"Mr. Zundel decided not to address these issued and not to clarify
his relationship with those individuals and organizations. Mr. Zundel
decided to demonstrate that he is more or less a victim of a vendetta by
CSIS against him." (12) One wonders whether Judge Blais was sleeping
on July 27, August 30 and 31. In dramatic testimony, Douglas Christie, the
"Battling Barrister" from Victoria gave his observations of
nearly 20 years of representing Ernst Zundel, including an aggregate of 18
months spent over the years living at Zundelhaus in Toronto.
Mr. Christie was emphatic about Mr. Zundel's outspoken
contempt for people who resort to violence or talk about violence. He
specifically addressed Mr. Zundel's relationship to all the persons
mentioned in the report. His conclusion was that Mr. Zundel was admired by
many people, but that young people, far from looking to him as a guru,
thought he was out of touch and tended to ignore his advice. Mr. Christie
characterized Mr. Zundel's supporters as largely German and Anglo, ageing,
and extremely law-abiding. Mr. Christie is, of course, a gentleman and an
officer of the Court. One might think that his testimony might count for
something.
Once again, former CSIS boss Mr. Justice Pierre Blais
upholds the preposterous. "I would agree with counsel for the
Ministers that, even though counsel for Mr. Zundel has shown
dissatisfaction with the disclosure of the evidence, Mr. Zundel has
received adequate disclosure in this case. " (27) Despite numerous
secret hearings, including one at noon the day Mr. John Farrell, former
CSIS operative and mail thief testified, Mr. Justice Blais has not
revealed a single extra scrap of information to the defence.
The fiction is that secret evidence is given to the judge
in camera and he must assess whether divulging this information would be
injurious to national security. It beggars belief that not a single piece
of information fails to meet this test.
However, Judge Blais's understanding of a threat to
national security is so broad that he refuses to tell the defence even how
many days of secret evidence have been heard.
Can't tell us: "National security!"
Paul Fromm
Director
CANADIAN
ASSOCIATION FOR FREE EXPRESSION INC.
