My daughter is being taught about child soldiers from Africa and nothing about the horrors faced by a Canadian teen in Afghanistan and Cuba.
omar khadr
From Congo to Guantanamo: Omar Khadr, the invisible child soldier
Last week, when my teenage daughter came back from school, she proudly showed me her newly bought t-shirt. This t-shirt had an intriguing slogan: "The invisible children."
After asking her few questions and to my incredulous look, she told me the following: "An organisation from the U.S. came to our school and spoke to us about child soldiers in Congo and other African countries. This organisation is on a school tour in North America. It sells crafts and other items in order to help raise money that will be used to award these kids scholarships... Isn't that great?" She was very enthusiastic.
Not Rex: Welcome back Khadr!
The curtain has come down on the piece of political theatre.
Related rabble.ca story:
Lawyers Rights Watch Canada: Repatriate Omar Khadr to Canada for rehabilitation
The Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, Rhadhika Coomaraswamy, has called for the repatriation of Omar Khadr to Canada for rehabilitation because of his status as a child soldier at the time of the events leading to the current military tribunal proceedings.
Harper's hitlist: A Kafkaesque nightmare for abandoned Canadians
rabble.ca columnist Murray Dobbin details the harm Prime Minister Stephen Harper is doing to the political and social fabric of Canada in a new essay commissioned by The Council of Canadians. This article is an excerpt taken from the essay, the seventh in a 10-part series on Harper's assault on democracy.
Refusing to seek clemency for Canadian death row inmates overseas.
Canada in breach of human rights obligations in Omar Khadr case
On May 21-22, 2012, the United Nations Committee against Torture will review Canada's failure to comply with its obligations under the Convention against Torture to prevent, punish and remedy the torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of Canadian Omar Khadr during his ongoing detention at Guantánamo prison.
In a report to the Committee against Torture, Lawyers' Rights Watch Canada (LRWC) and the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group (CLMG) state that Canada was both a direct participant and indirectly complicit in the torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of Mr. Khadr by his U.S. captors.
2.jpg "David Climenhaga, author of the Alberta Diary blog, is a journalist, author, journalism teacher, poet and trade union communicator who has worked in senior writing and editing positions with the Toronto Globe and Mail and the Calgary Herald. His 1995 book, A Poke in the Public Eye, explores the relationships among Canadian journalists, public relations people and politicians. He left journalism after the strike at the Calgary Herald in 1999 and 2000 to work as Communications Director of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees, which with more than 73,000 members is Alberta’s largest union and Canada’s 10th largest. Alberta Diary focuses on Alberta politics and social issues. Contact: albertadiary @ gmail.com")
Omar Khadr: Still no closure to dark chapter in Canadian history
Recently, two major events received attention in the mainstream media. Both events left their marks on Canada's human rights reputation. Canada's actions (or inactions) and positions with respect to these two matters will undoubtedly be judged by the history books.
Return to Canada
The first event is the possible return of Omar Khadr to Canada. After spending more than eight years in Guantanamo, and after he has suffered torture and psychological harassment since he was 15, Omar Khadr entered a 'plea bargain' in return for an eight-year sentence. Part of the deal was an implicit diplomatic agreement that Canada would recommend his transfer after one year.
