Canada to Prosecute Bush?

By BJ Bjornson

George W. Bush will be making his first post-presidency speech in not too many days, and unlike when he was actually President, he's decided to make Canada his first stop, (and boy, do I feel honoured).

It appears that it won't be all fun and games, however. Human rights lawyers are looking to block his entry and possibly even prosecute Bush for his authorization of torture.

Vancouver Lawyer Gail Davidson said the government has an obligation under the law to ban Bush from entering Canada because of his role in supporting torture:

Davidson says that because Bush has been “credibly accused” of supporting torture in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Canada has a legal obligation to deny him entry under Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. The law says foreign nationals who have committed war crimes or crimes against humanity, including torture, are “inadmissible” to Canada. “The test isn’t whether the person’s been convicted, but whether there’s reasonable grounds to think that they have been involved,” says Davidson.

Davidson is correct; Bush has been “credibly accused” of supporting torture. Earlier this year, Manfred Nowak, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, urged the U.S. to pursue Bush and Donald Rumsfeld on charges that they authorized torture and other harsh interrogation techniques. Indeed, Bush himself said last year that he was aware of his advisers’ discussions on torture and recently admitted that he personally authorized waterboarding Khalid Sheik Muhammad.

. . .

If (or when) Bush is granted entry, Calgary activists will be waiting. “We want to give him the welcome that he deserves — which is we want him to go back to the States, or we want him arrested,” says organizer Collette Lemieux. “It’s very important that we keep the pressure up. …We have to make it clear that there’s accountability,” she said.

Of course, given our current Prime Minister is an admitted fanboy of Bush and the Republicans, the odds of Bush even being denied entry into the country are too infinitesimal to compute.

Still, one can dream.

Comments

[farside268]

If you're really interested in testing the waters with a possible prosecution of Bush, you should try to go to your local superior court and file a private prosecution against him. Canadian law recognizes universal jurisdiction for violations of international law. I haven't reviewed the particular statute, some require the approval of the province's attorney general to commence certain prosecutions, but it may be worthwhile to pursue.

[Peter G.]

Seriously BJ. Do you think Ignatieff or Layton would deny Bush entry? They'd all want a photo op with him for pity's sake.

[BJ Bjornson]

Oh, I grant Ignatieff would only be slightly more likely to deny Bush entry than Harper, though while still an infinitesimal chance, it might actually be possible to compute it.

Layton, on the other hand, might actually be likely to do something like that, but in his case, the infinitesimal chance is his actually ever having the power to do so.

[cx]

Oh please! If this works, can you send him anywhere else but back to the US?