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Secret Trials are Scary! Stop Terrorizing Arabs and Muslims!

A Call to Confront Canada's Spy Agency on Hallowe'en!

Friday, October 31, Hallowe'en, is the National Day of Action to End Secret Trials in Canada

Join us in a "trick or treat" for the secret evidence at the National Headquarters of CSIS in Ottawa on Friday, October 31

We will gather at CSIS for a peaceful rally and a direct action to search for the evidence and to demand:

1. An End to the Use of the CSIS Secret Trial Security Certificate, and an End to the Use of Secret Evidence in All Immigration and Refugee Proceedings

2. The Immediate Release of Five Muslim Men Currently Held a Collective 99 Months in Canadian Prisons, Without Charge or Bail, on Secret "Evidence" Neither They nor Their Lawyers are Allowed to See, and Compensation for the Families

3. Immediate Release and Due Process for the Pakistani Students Held in "Preventive Detention" in Toronto

4. An end to CSIS and RCMP harassment of Muslims and People of Arabic and Middle Eastern Heritage

5. An end to CSIS viewing political protests in Canada as "terrorist" acts

On Friday, October 31, Halloween, early morning rush hour, we plan a large, creative, theatrical, public rally and nonviolent direct action, the first ever of its kind, at the national headquarters of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS, Canada's national spy agency), in Ottawa.

This mass trick-or-treat will seek the secret evidence which has held 5 Muslim men behind bars, much of it in solitary confinement, for a cumulative 99 months, without charge or bail. Against all the normal

rules of due process in Canada, the men and their lawyers are denied access to the evidence that CSIS presents to judges to argue that they are a risk to security and should be deported to countries where they would face torture and execution.

This is a call to join in the "trick or treat" AND for affinity groups to come with their own creative actions. Lots of creative ideas have come forward already:

-- a "couch action" to provide psychological help for CSIS agents whose irrational fear of Arabs and Muslims is throwing innocents behind bars, breaking up families, and deporting refugees to sure death;

-- the "How does it Feel" Affinity Group, which would station itself at both entrances to CSIS, snapping picture after picture of every face and licence plate going into CSIS;

-- guerrilla theatre exploring the nature of "security" including Linus's blanket in the comic strip Peanuts; and

-a "meet and greet" of the "terrorists" of Canada, since CSIS declared just about everyone who has ever protested in Canada to be a terrorist threat (in their June annual report to Parliament).

The field is open, so bring your costume ideas, your creative spirit, and help plan an action to put the national spotlight on the threat to democracy posed by the CSIS secret trials, by the targetting of Muslims, Arabs and people of Middle Eastern heritage, and by the clampdown on political dissent through the manipulation of fear of terrorism.

**If you cannot make it to Ottawa, please consider organizing an event (such as a vigil at an MP's office, a call-in to the Prime Minister, etc.), in your community! Contact us at tasc@web.ca.**

Sponsored by the Campaign to Stop Secret Trials in Canada (associated with Homes not Bombs and local support coalitions engaged in solidarity work with refugees and immigrants targetted by Canada's spy agencies).

Contacts:

Toronto: (416) 651-5800, tasc@web.ca

Montreal: (514) 521 5252

Hamilton: (905) 627-2696

Windsor: (519) 258-1555

Ottawa (613) 722-1983 (as of Sept. 15)

***Note regarding the spirit of the action:

In general, Homes not Bombs actions are built on three equally

weighted components: they are confrontational, they are nonviolent, and they are transformative.

We are all coming to this campaign from different backgrounds, and our definitions of what constitutes certain types of protests vary widely. As an organization which has worked on this issue, in close contact with most of the families involved, for a number of years, Homes not Bombs is asking that participants in the day's event respect the following Basis of Unity, given that our actions will reflect on the families directly affected.

We also ask respect for this basis of unity because the actions of everyone affect especially those who might be arrested in the civil disobedience both in terms of potential bail conditions and at trial.

The Basis of Unity is not a judgment of others who would go beyond these parameters in other events, but stems from concern for the safety of many vulnerable participants.

In sum, the Basis of Unity for the action is:

1. We pledge not to do violence -- verbal, physical or psychological -- to our opponents, whether they be police, CSIS agents, or bystanders who disagree with us. We pledge this both in reference to pro-active acts of violence and in the sense of "self-defence." (nonviolence training will be available to explore de-escalation techniques and creative resistance ideas)

2. We agree not to have alcohol or drugs either on site or at the gathering points for the action, nor do we carry any weapons or objects which could be perceived as weapons.

3. We do not engage in property damage unless it is clearly defined and consensed to by all of the affinity groups taking part in the action.

4. We attempt to establish an atmosphere of calm and self-discipline at our actions through the use of song and theatre and humour, while preferring to set up a situation where traditional chanting and long, boring speeches can find no root!

5. We organize so that everyone participating in the action knows what to expect from one another before engaging in the confrontation, so that the action is carried out with a strong sense of solidarity and mutual trust.

LOGISTICAL CONCERNS

1. Buses will leave southern Ontario and Montreal on Thursday, October 30 and return the evening of Friday, October 31. Tickets will be $40 return. If you can help us out and subsidize seats for low-income folks, cheques can be sent to Homes not Bombs at PO Box 73620, 509 St. Clair Ave. West, Toronto, ON M6C 1C0.

2. Once in Ottawa, folks will gather in one space to eat and plan for the morning’s action (likely to take place during early am rush hour). This meeting is an opportunity to get to know one another, to share our ideas (those which have not already been shared over e-mail), and prepare folks with some last minute tips on nonviolence in situations of conflict.

IMPORTANT: The lines will be very clearly drawn in terms of "legal" rallying area and zones where actual civil resistance which could lead to arrest will take place (which is not to imply that the "arrestable" portion of the action is not "legal," as we have won six cases in which we have been criminally charged over the past few years. Homes not Bombs actions are always very clearly designed with respect to concerns of those who wish no interaction with police.

ALSO: While this is a Halloween-themed event, costume is not a requirement for participants. If you would like to be there simply as "leafletter," people driving in to CSIS will likely not having any trouble figuring out that is what you are. Do not be surprised, however, if you see the odd Sherlock Holmes, Nancy Drew or "Secret Agent Man."