What should we do with him?

I have no concern whatsoever about terrorists who kill innocent victims and then after being caught, they are sentenced to life in prison without parole or alternatively, they are executed. These demons from hell deserve none of our sympathies.

The quandary that is facing Canada is; what do we do with a suspected terrorist who we don’t wish to return to his country because his country will arrest him and torture him soon after he arrives?

I am speaking of Hassan Almrei, age 35. He arrived in Canada in 1999 claiming refugee status. Up until very recently, he was held in a special prison specifically built to house suspected terrorists because he is accused of terrorist connections and ideology, and for his reputation of obtaining false documents, and further, for his relationship with Ibn al-Khattab (Muslim guerilla fighter and financier working with Chechen Mujahideen in the Chechen Wars) He had not supported Khattab financially or otherwise, but he admired Khattab. He had pictures of Khattab on his computer and he visited Chechen extremist websites. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) has also alleged that Almrei has demonstrated a devotion to Osama bin Laden and his ideals by fighting in Afghanistan. Actually he fought Communist-backed troops and rival forces in Afghanistan between 1990-1994 while bin Laden was still living in the Sudan.

The Canadian government contends that he supports an extremist ideology, which began when he was a teenager fighting the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. The government also states that he was part of an international forgery ring, although he is not accused of forging documents himself. Almrei has admitted he procured a false passport for a Syrian friend who was later associated with illicit money transfers and deported by the United States. Despite these alleged facts, it is not believed to have been an Al Qaeda operative or engaged in any kind of violence.

I would be less than honest if I didn’t say that the evidence of suspected terrorism against this man is flimsy at best. It really raises the constitutional issue of freedom of thought.

After a special prison was built for five long-term prisoners held on security certificates, four were released on bail and house arrest terms, leaving Almrei as the sole occupant of the prison which continued to operate at a cost of $2.6 million annually to house Almrei alone. He was ordered released under house arrest by a Federal Court judge on January 2, 2009.

He is currently under house arrest in Mississauga, Ontario. He has a tracking device on his leg and for two hours each day, Hassan Almrei sits tethered to an electrical outlet as he charges the clunky GPS bracelet permanently affixed to his right ankle. He can't let it run out of juice, or the security agents responsible for tracking him will come running.

Almrei also logs the time and name of his pre-screened visitors with Pavlovian efficiency as soon as he hears a knock on the door. Three ceiling cameras watch his every move, windows have alarms, his phone is tapped and one room is occupied by a black box the size of a small fridge, which emits a high-pitched hum and is described only as a "component (that) is required to monitor Mr. Almrei in his home by a Canada Border Services Agency employee.

Monitoring the Syrian refugee in his Mississauga townhouse is a costly process. It will cost about $575,000 a year to pay for the agents' salaries and the operations and management of the electronic equipment. There may be other costs, such as wiretap analysis done by Canada's spy service. Then there are the surveillance notes, videos and pictures that need to be analyzed by separate agency agents. He’s allowed three four-hour escorted trips out of his rented house per week.The security restrictions, the strictest Canadian courts have imposed, seem appropriate, albeit costly if Almrei is what the government contends, a man who supports terrorism.

The question that I am forced to ask is; “Does this mean that there is going to an indefinite detention of this man?”

The larger legal question however will be whether the courts will allow Canada to deport someone to a country with a record of human rights abuses. Canada is a signatory to international treaties that prohibit the removal of someone likely to face torture or death in another country; and since Almrei was accepted in Canada as a refugee a year before his arrest, that risk has already been acknowledged.

Canadian courts may also look to a House of Lords decision that not too long ago cleared the way for the U.K. to deport a dozen terrorism suspects who challenged their removal based on similar fears. The ruling upheld the government's position that those concerns are alleviated by written assurances from Jordan and Algeria pledging fair treatment. (no torture)

Can the Canadian government trust the Syrian government to honour such a pledge if Almrei is returned to Syria? I am not convinced that Canada should accept that country’s pledge without strict conditions since Syria is notorious as a torturer of people sent there. For example, a Canadian was sent there by the United States and he was tortured as soon as he arrived.

If Canada is forever convinced that sending Almrei to Syria will result in him being tortured or killed, then what do we do with him? Do we keep him under house arrest until he reaches the age of 80 when he would be presumed to no longer be a risk to Canadians? Let’s presume that that may happen. What would it cost Canadian tax payers? The answer is simple enough. Multiply 45 years times $575,000 and you get $25,875,000.

That is a lot on money to spend protecting Canadians from someone who the government suspects may have terrorist leanings?

Consider the following possibilities of resolving this problem.

Proposal One

Almrei should be put on trial. If he is acquitted, then he should be permitted to remain in Canada and apply for landed immigrant status and later, apply for Canadian citizenship.

Proposal Two

If Almrei is found guilty of supporting terrorism, he should be either imprisoned further or alternatively, be released as time already served and returned to Syria on the following conditions; (1) that there be an agreement between Syria and Canada that he is not be subjected to torture for any reason whatsoever nor be arrested based solely on the allegations that Canada had when he was arrested in Canada. (2) that he be permitted to visit the Canadian Embassy in Damascus, Syria at least once a month for as long as he wishes to show that he isn’t being tortured. If he can show that he is being tortured,(providing it isn't self administered)he can apply for political asylum again. (3) and finally, that he not be given a Syrian passport in order to prevent him from entering any other country.

If any of my readers have a third proposal, please enter it in the Comments section of this blog.