ZGram - 10/29/2004 - "Update on the Zundel Case"

[zgrams at zgrams.zundelsite.org]

Zgram - Where Truth is Destiny:  Now more than ever!

October 29, 2004

Good Morning from the Zundelsite:

A few more days, and the Zundel Security Certificate hearings 
conclude.  For the third time, Judge Blais has been asked to take 
himself off the case, since he is literally dripping with bias. 
There is yet to be another hearing before some appellate body on the 
matter.  By now, there have been so many appeals about the disgusting 
unfairness of it all, I barely know what's what.  The only item that 
registers in my fatigued brain is that, apparently, Judge Blais has 
promised not to announce a final ruling before November 23. 

Does anybody still expect a miracle?

B'nai Brith, in a press release written by Anita Bromberg, B'nai 
Brith counsel, dated October 28, 2004 said this:

[START]

Hearings crawl to close in Zundel review

More than 18 months since Judge Pierre Blais of the Federal Court 
commenced hearings to review the reasonableness of the security 
certificate issued against Holocaust denier Ernst Zundel, only one 
more day is scheduled to complete final submissions. But as lawyers 
who have been monitoring proceedings by and against Zundel spanning 
more than two decades will undoubtably warn you, it is wise to expect 
the unexpected.

{END]

Could be! 

Ernst laughed when I read him this passage.  He said:  "Have they 
finally figured me out?"

Meanwhile, we soldier on. Lots is happening, on many different 
fronts, including many little "mini initiatives" by wide-awake 
Canadians who are not in the least pleased of this ritual judicial 
kosher slaughter of an utterly innocent man.  I have literally 
thousands of letters that say so - all of them sent, faxed, emailed 
to the Honorable Anne McLellan - to a deafening silence!  What else?

For instance, a few weeks ago I was approached by a Canadian writer 
who described himself as a small-town activist on various local 
issues.  He had become intrigued by Ernst Zundel's political 
persecution and asked my permission to do something about it.  Of 
course I told him no permission was needed - he was more than welcome 
to put his shoulder to the wheel.

Here is one of his letters to his own readership list:

[START]

All recipients of this email are listed in a BCC because the topic of 
this email is politically "unpopular" and somewhat "McCarthy-istic". 
The exceptions are the Honourable Anne McLellan, our minister who 
looks into this type of thing, and Ingrid Rimland who is the wife of 
Ernst Zundel.

So my political friends, I forward to you the ever-unpopular Ernst Zundel!

I KNOW that you don't want to hear about him and you certainly don't 
want your name to be ASSOCIATED with his.  But you are also some of 
the most FAIR-MINDED individuals that I know and I cannot HELP but 
keep you informed from time to time on this matter.  I know the kinds 
of people you are, and I know that justice will pick at you until you 
have to do something about this. Or at least look into it secretly, 
when nobody is watching.

During my investigations into this matter, I have come to realize 
that Mr. Zundel is not the monster he has been made out to be.  He 
appears to me to be nothing more than a publisher and an historian, 
among an ever-growing number of historians, who disbelieve the 
currently accepted version of the "Holocaust of the Jews".  In any 
case, whatever he believes is fine with me.  That freedom is 100% 
Canadian.  I have purposely read nothing of his writings so all of my 
information comes from the transcripts of his trials.  In these 
transcripts there has been no evidence that he is anything more than 
a publisher and sometime historian nor that he has ever uttered a 
phrase that could be considered "hateful" of any group, nor that he 
has ever condoned the use of violence.

Canada has broken this man financially with non-stop criminal 
proceedings and yet he has never been convicted of any crime.

Interestingly, some of the expert witnesses on history, brought in to 
challenge his beliefs in court, have been forced to rewrite their 
books because of new evidence that THEY learned from the Zundel team 
during the trials!  So at least as Canadians, we can proudly say that 
we are making history more accurate with our tax money!

So stop being afraid of him and listen to what is going on.  None of 
us are historians so that debate is none of our concern anyhow.  Look 
at the big picture of the Security Certificate.

I am forwarding to you a copy of an article written in today's Globe 
and Mail.  Please read it, even if it's just to humour me.

Particularly interesting to me is the fact that this was very likely 
written in the Globe and Mail directly due to MY INTERVENTION! 
Finally, someone agreed that if we only IGNORE WHO ERNST ZUNDEL IS, 
we would see the extreme danger of this Security Certificate test 
case.  Amnesty International has some really STRONG things to say 
about it... you might check that out too (see attached letter 
addressed to the Honourable Anne McLellan).

Craig (one of our recipients today) will recall Mel Hurtig's book 
release at the Press Club in Ottawa a couple of weeks ago where we 
sat with the Globe reporter on Immigration.  We discussed Mr. 
Zundel's case and marvelled that, if what I were saying were true, 
nobody had been covering this story that appeared to be a blatant 
example of using an "untouchable" topic as the test case for an 
illegal and frightening law.  It appears that the story was handed 
over to the correct person at the Globe and Mail, the Justice 
Reporter, and is now, finally, in print.

When it appears in the Globe & Mail, it makes ME look less the loony 
"John-the-Baptist-Crying-In-The-Wilderness".   I HATE looking loony.

Please note that no actual "CRIME" is even attached to the accused as 
that is not necessary under a Security Certificate.  The closest 
thing to an accusation is the suggestion that his association with 
some undesireable Canadians might make him a threat to National 
Security and so, not deserving of a fair trial, he may now be 
permanently incarcerated in solitary confinement with no chance to 
defend himself legally.  Right now you believe that I am 
exaggerating.  I know.  Read on.

Also not mentioned is that the present "Judge Blais" is also the same 
man who appears to have consented to the many laws broken by the RCMP 
in the '80's in his hatred of what he called "the Right-Wing" 
(remember the RCMP scandals with the Reform Party and others?).  He 
is also the man who was Soliciter General when CSIS knowingly allowed 
pipe bombs to be sent to Ernst Zundel's home in the '90's (as given 
in sworn testimony by an RCMP officer during this trial I believe). 
Judge Blais may be said to be "out to get" Ernst Zundel and yet he is 
allowed to preside over a case where no public evidence is required 
to be given and no specific crime has been said to have been 
committed.

If any of you can add to my understanding of this case, please 
contact me.  I am particularly hoping that the Honourable Anne 
McLellan will be able to provide more information to Canadians.   The 
phrase "SECRET TRIALS" should never be followed by "ARE LEGAL IN 
CANADA".

Thank you for your time and patience.  And please read this copy of 
what I like to call "MY STORY". 

James White

PS.  I do NOT hate Jews, or anybody.  You all know me well enough to 
know that it is my love of JUSTICE, my pride in CANADA and my lack of 
FEAR (sometimes called "foolishness") that make me help the underdog, 
in this case, Mr. Zundel.  And I will help you too, should the need 
ever arise, as I hope you would help me (and may have to as a result 
of my vociferous involvement in this "untouchable" case and the 
Montreal demerger!  I'm becoming a lightning rod!).

[END]


The article referred to above:

[START]

Judge accused of 'misguided approach' in Zundel case

  Blais guilty of dispensing 'secret justice,' lawyers for Holocaust 
denier assert

   By KIRK MAKIN /  JUSTICE REPORTER

  UPDATED AT 7:36 AM EDT	Thursday, Oct 21, 2004 

  Holocaust denier Ernst Zundel's lawyers have accused a Federal Court 
judge of running an error-plagued deportation hearing that "cheapens 
and degrades" the justice system.

  In scathing arguments that took them into terrain where few lawyers 
have dared to tread, defence lawyers Peter Lindsay and Chi-Kun Shi 
accused Mr. Justice Pierre Blais of actively embracing the secrecy 
of Canada's anti-terrorism law.

  The federal government has invoked the law's security-certificate 
procedure in an attempt to deport Mr. Zundel as a threat to national 
security.

  The lawyers said that what they called Judge Blais's "misguided and 
unchecked" approach to national security has meant that Mr. Zundel 
-- whom they described as a long-time pacifist with no criminal 
record -- has been plunged into an 18-month ordeal of solitary 
confinement and legal unfairness.

  They said Judge Blais seems unable "to even understand simple 
submissions," and that a colossally unfair proceeding has devastated 
Mr. Zundel's right to fairness and brought the justice system into 
disrepute.

  Evidence in security-certificate proceedings is presented to the 
judge in secrecy and not revealed to the defence.

  "Maybe no one cares, because this is only the notorious and reviled 
Ernst Zundel," Mr. Lindsay and Ms. Shi said in a written submission. 
"But it is not only Ernst Zundel. The apparent approach of the court 
in this case cheapens and degrades all participants in this 
important part of our system of justice -- and our system of justice 
itself. Mr. Zundel is thus at the mercy of a secret proceeding and 
of the judge conducting it.

  "Secret justice, dispensed in the way it has been in this case, is 
no justice at all. It is Mr. Zundel's plea that this court look at 
the mistakes it has made and change its approach with respect to 
this matter, in order to appear more even-handed and fair."

  The defence attack was the culmination of steadily mounting 
frustration in the courtroom. Mr. Lindsay and Judge Blais have had 
repeated testy exchanges in recent months, usually over Mr. 
Lindsay's right to call or cross-examine witnesses.

  The defence has tried twice to have Judge Blais -- a onetime 
solicitor-general of Canada -- recuse himself. An appeal of his 
refusals will be heard next month in the Federal Court of Appeal.

  Mr. Lindsay argued in court yesterday that the proceeding is a 
perversion of what the security-certificate legislation was intended 
to do, that is, to roust out genuine terrorists who could wreak 
havoc on the country.

  Mr. Lindsay said the secrecy provisions have allowed government 
lawyers to produce next to no evidence in the public segments of the 
hearing. Meanwhile, behind closed doors, he said, they have 
inevitably trotted out a melange of hearsay and baseless accusations 
that cannot be challenged.

  "The public case is non-existent," Mr. Lindsay said. "It is devoid 
of evidence. It is an ocean of innuendo and implied involvement of 
Mr. Zundel in inspiring other people to commit acts of violence or 
terrorism -- without ever providing any proof . . .

  "The public case goes far beyond guilt by association," he 
continued. "It is guilt by contact. I don't say this easily, but it 
makes McCarthyism look reasonable."

  Mr. Lindsay said that Judge Blais has heard persuasive evidence 
that, far from inciting young hotheads of the far right to engage in 
violence, Mr. Zundel has denounced violence and condemned those who 
indulge in it.

  He said that Mr. Zundel has built his life around peacefully arguing 
that the Holocaust has been exaggerated, resulting in the unfair 
vilification of the German people.

  Otherwise, Mr. Lindsay said, his client lived a blameless life in 
Canada for 42 years, never producing a single pamphlet or newsletter 
that advocated violence.

  "According to the Crown, Mr. Zundel apparently woke up one morning 
in 1990 and became a terrorist," Mr. Lindsay said. "Here is this 
great purveyor of literature who distributes material all over the 
world, yet they can't come up with one [item] showing him advocating 
violence."

  Mr. Lindsay said there is great irony in Mr. Zundel having 
repeatedly become the victim of violence. He said that his client's 
home was vandalized and ultimately burned down. Mr. Zundel has also 
been attacked outside the courthouse and received any number of 
death threats and letter bombs, Mr. Lindsay said.

  The case has adjourned until early November.  [END]