Government pondering alternatives to repatriation for Khadr

OTTAWA – The Harper government says it will not seek Omar Khadr’s repatriation from Guantanamo Bay but that it is considering other undisclosed options to make up for violating his constitutional rights.

Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon and Dimitri Soudas, a spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, shut the door Wednesday on requesting the Canadian citizen’s return to his birth country, reaffirming their long-standing position that he is accused of a serious crime and must face the U.S. justice system.

The refusal to budge comes after the Supreme Court of Canada refused last week to order the government to seek repatriation, but declared that a Canadian official violated Khadr’s charter rights by interrogating him in 2004, knowing that U.S. authorities had subjected him to sleep deprivation to soften him up for questioning.

"There’s no shift in Canadian policy on this," Soudas told reporters. "Their ruling said we get to decide and we’re saying that Mr. Khadr faces serious charges on a wide range of things. . . . It’s under the American administration’s purview right now to pursue with the court case."

Cannon asserted that Khadr, who faces a military commission in July on charges of murder as a war crime, will continue to receive Canadian consular services, but that "our position has not changed" on asking the Americans to free him into Canadian hands.

"As you will recall Mr. Khadr is being held by the Americans for his involvement, or alleged involvement I should say, in the murder of an American military officer," Cannon said at a news conference.

Cannon said Justice Minister Rob Nicholson is looking at options to make up for violating Khadr’s rights and "once we have an answer, we will share that with you."

NDP justice critic Joe Comartin speculated that the Harper government could respond to the Supreme Court ruling by trying to seek assurances from the U.S. that the information it obtained in its interviews with Khadr – which were passed on to the Americans – will not be used at his military trial.

"That’s a step that they could try to do," said Comartin, who predicted that seeking concessions for Khadr in the U.S. "may well be enough to satisfy the Supreme Court."

Another possibility would be to ask the U.S. to take into account Khadr’s status as a minor by treating him less harshly if he is convicted, suggested Cheryl Milne, executive director of the David Asper Centre for Constitutional Rights at the University of Toronto.

The Toronto-born Khadr, now 23, was 15 years old when he was captured by American forces following a shootout with al-Qaida fighters in Afghanistan in July 2002. He is charged with murder as a war crime, and five other charges, for allegedly lobbing a grenade that killed a U.S. army medic.

Milne and Comartin said that the government, if it does nothing to rectify its charter wrong, could be seen as flouting the Supreme Court ruling, but Milne acknowledged that the Supreme Court directive on whether the government must act was not clear.

"There are certainly differences of opinion about what the court has said," she said.

One of Khadr’s lawyers, Nathan Whitling, said the government’s refusal to seek repatriation was expected, given its long-standing position.

"We are disappointed but not at all surprised by the Harper government’s refusal to accept responsibility for its violation of the basic human rights of a Canadian child," Whitling said.