Alexa McDonough held a press conference with families of four men currently held on security certificates, calling on the government to charge these men if evidence exists that they've committed a crime or release them immediately! Ms. McDonough tabled a detailed motion that also called on the government to abide by the UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Canada is signatory, and delivered a statement in the House. Read on..NDP Justice Critic Joe Comartin (MP Windsor-Tecumseh) has succeeded in passing a motion at the Justice Committee to review Canada's use of security certificates, as part of its review of Canada's public security legilsation. Alexa's statement:

Mr. Speaker, New Democrats stand in solidarity with family members of those being detained under so-called security certificates. Families are in Ottawa today pleading for their loved ones to be accorded rights, supposedly guaranteed by Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms and by the UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Canada is a signatory. Earlier today I tabled a motion calling on this government to charge or release these detainees, held for up to four years, with no charges laid, no presumption of innocence, no due process and no opportunity to defend themselves in a fair and transparent judicial process. I urge all members of this House to join me in calling for an end to these draconian security certificates, which violate the Canadian Constitution and our international obligations. Let us end this practice that has torn families apart, separating these men from their parents, their wives and their children. Alexa's motion:

That, in the opinion of the House, the government should: (a) either lay charges against individuals being held under Security Certificates and allow those accused to undergo a fair and transparent judicial trial or immediately release them; (b) comply with the United Nations' Convention against Torture and Other Cruel or Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment by refusing to deport detainees to any country where there is a substantial risk of torture or death as a result of an act of torture; (c) halt the use of Security Certificates and re-write the security provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to make them consistent with our constitution, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the UN Convention against Torture; and (d) provide leadership, in partnership with other levels of government and civil society, to end the racial profiling, attacks on civil liberties, targeting of Arab and Muslim individuals and communities, and other ethnic and religious minorities across Canada, through a plan of action and allocation of appropriate resources. ********************************** V. Anthony Salloum Legislative and Communications Assistant - Adjoint Legislatif; Adjoint aux communications Alexa McDonough, MP/ Depute Halifax Foreign Affairs and Post-Secondary Education Critic; Tel: (613)995-4492 Fax: (613)992-8569