True North

A U.S. military court has decided that it will not rush to hear Omar Khadr’s appeal on his war crimes conviction. 

Since being released into Canada in 2013 after pleading guilty to five war crimes in relation to the death of U.S. soldier Christopher Speer, Khadr has attempted to appeal his conviction. 

However, the U.S. government and now the Court of Military Commission Review (CMCR) has stated that Khadr can’t have an expedited hearing. Khadr’s case was put on hold by the commission while it awaited a civil court decision on the unrelated case of Ali Hamza al-Bahlul who was convicted for creating propaganda for Osama bin Laden. 

“We see no reason to vacate our abeyance in appellant Khadr’s case until the issues in al-Bahlul are decided finally by the D.C. Circuit or the Supreme Court of the United States,” stated the CMCR.

As part of his guilty plea deal, Khadr was able to escape a jury recommended 40-year imprisonment. In the plea, Khadr waived his right to appeal his conviction and was sentenced to only serve eight years in prison.

Earlier this month, the U.S. government echoed the commission’s latest decision when it stated that Khadr had only filed his challenge after pocketing the “agreement’s benefits.” 

“Khadr waited for years after the convening authority’s action to challenge his guilty plea and appellate waiver. He took no action until after he had pocketed the agreement’s benefits, received his 32-year sentence reduction and transfer to Canada, and was beyond the jurisdiction of U.S. courts,” claimed the U.S. government.

After being released into Canada, Khadr sued the federal government for allegedly violating his rights. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau settled with the convicted war criminal out of court and paid him $10.5 million, calling it the “best option” for Canada. 

Earlier this year, an Alberta judge ruled that Khadr’s charges had expired and that he was to be freed from all conditions including a ban on acquiring a Canadian passport. 

Meanwhile, the family of the slain soldier Christopher Speer is seeking to have a decision by an Utah court to award them $134 million (USD) enforced in Canada. 

A man who attempted to join ISIS in 2014 was released from prison in Ontario despite being deemed an “undue risk to society.” 

Pamir Hakimzadah was released on May 24 of this year after serving six months in prison for travelling to Turkey in order to join the extremist group ISIS. While in Turkey, Hakimzadah was apprehended by counter-terrorism officials and deported back to Canada.

Prosecutors sought a six-year sentence for his crimes. However, he was only ordered to serve six months in a federal prison after the judge took into account the time he spent in custody, adding up to a total of three years. 

It took nearly three years for Canadian authorities to charge and arrest Hakimzadah for leaving Canada to join ISIS. The charges were brought against him after he was involved in an unrelated assault incident. 

The former Ryerson University student was alleged to have openly spoken about his desire to join the terror group and claimed that “all non-Muslims should be killed.” 

“He spoke either in favour of or in defence of ISIS. He viewed online ISIS content such as videos and posts. He also viewed a website that provided instructions on how to get into Syria,” claimed a Crown lawyer involved in the case. 

Despite having his parole denied, Hakimzada was released on probation under several conditions. While out of prison, the court has ordered Hakimzada to undergo psychotherapy, not possess a firearm or a passport and undergo “de-radicalization counselling.” 

Public Safety Canada believes that at least 180 people have travelled from Canada abroad in order to partake in terrorist activity. Out of those, 60 are believed to have already returned to the country. 

CBC laid off a number of workers last week, claiming a decrease in its operating budget. 

A total of 35 positions were dropped, a majority of which were based in Toronto. 

The CBC received a total of $1.2 billion in taxpayer dollars from the federal government in 2018-2019. This amount was $6 million more than the broadcaster received the year before.

Revenue was also lower last year by 14.5% or a total of $83 million. The broadcaster only managed to pull in $490 million in 2018-2019, compared to last year’s revenue of $573 million. 

In total, the CBC operated at a loss of $54.4 million for the year according to International Financial Reporting Standards. 

In the 2019 budget, the federal government allocated a total of $595 million in additional subsidies as part of its media bailout package. Included in the package is an annual payroll subsidy of $13,750 for newsroom employees.

As part of its program, the government will be listing “qualified Canadian journalism organizations” which will be entitled to receive the funds.

According to an access to information request filed by True North, as of August 15, 2019, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) had not yet designated any company as “qualified.” 

The heavily anti-conservative labour group Unifor was chosen as one of the panel members who get to decide which media organization qualifies for the bailout fund. Prior to the federal election, the group billed itself as “Andrew Scheer’s worst nightmare” and explicitly targeted the Conservatives on social media leading up to election day.

The CRA has been silent on the details of the bailout package while publishers have been calling to have the funding released. 

Other media companies in the ailing industry, including Torstar Corp. have reported heavy losses. Most recently, Torstar’s shares plunged and the company reported a whopping $40.9-million loss on October 30. 

Fewer recent immigrants are becoming Canadian citizens, according to a new report from Statistics Canada. 

A study, “Trends in the Citizenship Rate Among New Immigrants to Canada,” analyzed the rate of immigrants who went on to become Canadian citizens over the past 20 years.

“The results show that the citizenship rate among recent immigrants peaked in 1996 and declined considerably since then. This decline primarily occurred after 2006,” writes the study. 

Research shows that the citizenship rate among recent immigrants declined considerably over the past few decades. In 1996, 68% of immigrants who were in Canada for five years went on to become Canadian citizens, whereas in 2016 only 43% did the same. 

Issues over integration and a desire to become Canadian citizens might be a factor in these trends. 

According to the Canadian Index for Measuring Integration, the number of naturalized immigrants who voted in federal elections has also declined. Over the period of 2001-2005, a total of 76% of immigrants reported voting in the federal election, whereas by 2011, only 53% exercised their democratic rights as citizens.

The latest Stats Canada report found that immigrants who were in Canada between 5 to 9 years, a high of 75% became citizens in 1996, whereas in 2016, only 60% acquired citizenship. The study notes that the decline occurred mostly in recent years, dropping over seven percentage points over the course of 2011 to 2016. 

Regionally, the rate of immigrants from China going on to become Canadian citizens has dropped by nearly 40%. In 1996, 83% of immigrants from China went on to become naturalized, whereas by 2016, only 45% became citizens. 

Citizenship rates have declined across socioeconomic groups and varying language abilities. Although the highest decrease was witnessed among lower-income families with little English or French language abilities, high earners and those with higher education were also affected.

In 2001, 75% of immigrant families earning over $100,000 a year went on to become citizens, whereas in 2016, the number fell to 67%. The number of immigrants with university degrees has also declined from 81% in 1996 to 67% in 2016.

Recently the province of Quebec introduced a values screening test for new immigrants. The test requires prospective immigrants to answer questions about gender equality, secularism and provincial values. 

A poll from 2017 shows that Canadians overwhelmingly support screening new immigrants for Canadian values. A total of 74% of Canadians either strongly agreed with (35%) or found the idea of a values test “mostly favourable” (39%).

The federal government did not consult with the Parliamentary Press Gallery before it refused to accredit True North’s Andrew Lawton in October.

A story by Blacklock’s Reporter found that contrary to the government’s claims that the Parliamentary Press Gallery, an independent group, set the criteria for who can be accredited, the government never asked the Gallery’s directors what they thought about accrediting True North.

“The Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery was not involved, no,” Gallery Clerk Collin Lafrance said.

“I was just helping out on behalf of the Press Gallery.”

During the election, the Leaders’ Debates Commission refused to accredit True North’s Andrew Lawton and Rebel News’ David Menzies and Keean Bexte in a last-minute decision.

On October 7, Federal Judge Russel Zinn ordered the commission to accredit the three after challenging the decision in a court injunction.

“I find that the decisions are lacking in discernible rationality and logic, and thus are neither justified nor intelligible,” Zinn wrote.

True North is also entitled to compensation from the federal government for its legal fees.

The Commission claimed that it was the Press Gallery that helped “develop internal media accreditation guidelines,” adding that the Gallery “conducted an initial review of the applications.”

Despite these claims, Blacklock’s found that the Press Gallery’s board of directors had not met for months.

Lafrance, who was the one who refused to accredit Lawton, said he had not talked to the Press Gallery at all during the time, claiming he was told to ban him by the Debate Commission.

“Talk to the Commission,” he told reporters.

Lafrance told Lawton in an email that he was refused accreditation based off of True North’s alleged “advocacy,” without defining what advocacy meant to the gallery.

Meanwhile accredited media like the Toronto Star were admitted despite their mission statement stating they are “advocating for social and economic justice,” which the federal judge pointed to as an example in his ruling.

“Absent any explanation as to the meaning to be given to the term ‘advocacy,’ and given that the Commission accredited some organizations that have engaged in advocacy, I am at a loss to understand why the Commission reached the decisions it did,” Justice Zinn wrote.

A few days after the federal election the federal government informed True North that they are intending to appeal the court’s ruling, arguing that the judge’s decision was wrong.

True North has yet to receive compensation for its legal fees but will have to be dragged into another expensive legal fight for press freedom.

Immigration officials were considering True North founder Candice Malcolm’s criticism of Canada’s screening system according to emails uncovered by Rebel News’ Sheila Gunn Reid. 

ISIS supporter Abdulahi Sharif attempted to kill several pedestrians and a police officer in 2017 in a vehicular attack. Over several months Malcolm wrote a number of columns criticizing the government’s failure to properly screen Sharif and to allow him into the country.

In 2012, Sharif fled the U.S. after being ordered to be deported out of the country. He then illegally entered Canada where he was granted refugee status. 

“This case shows a major failure in the way that both countries deal with illegal migrants who arrive from terrorist hotspots. It particularly reveals our inability to properly screen and vet migrants who show up at our border, even with our sophisticated new system,” wrote Malcolm in one column. 

According to internal emails obtained by Gunn Reid from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, immigration officials referenced Malcolm’s works while discussing media coverage critical of the screening system.

One email mentions a redacted columnist in the Toronto Sun who was critical of the fact that Sharif was allowed into the country.

“The one story that comes to mind is [redacted] of the Toronto Sun who has said in more than one column that Canada should not have allowed him in. CBSA was their main target. Overall I think it’s fair to say that the media have questioned the screening system since the Edmonton system and some stories have been critical,” claims one email. 

Malcolm has written extensively on the topic of immigration. In another column, she pointed out the fact that Canada knowingly let Sharif into the country despite his deportation order in the U.S. 

“In this case, federal officials knowingly let a suspicious young man with a questionable past into the country, where he’s now alleged to have done tremendous harm,” wrote Malcolm. Sharif has since been found guilty of 11 charges in the vehicular attack.