本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛OTTAWA - An Ottawa engineer who was jailed in Syria as a security threat for more than two years is asking Prime Minister Paul Martin to intervene and save him from 30 months of Syrian military service.
INDEPTH: Maher Arar
Abdullah Almalki (file photo)
Saying Canadian security officials caused his troubles, Abdullah Almalki told CBC on Tuesday that the Canadian government is morally obliged to petition the Syrian government to let him return to his home in Ottawa.
"I would expect that the prime minister calls his equal here and asks him to solve this problem and get me immediately back into Canada," the Syrian-born man said in an interview from the Canadian embassy in Damascus. "That is what I expect. Enough is enough."
Syrian police arrested Almalki in Damascus in May 2002, a few months after the RCMP raided his house in Canada as part of a national security investigation.
On the weekend, a Syrian court ended the 33-year-old engineer's prison ordeal by acquitting him of being a security threat. However, the court also ruled that he had to report for the 30 months of military service required of all Syrian men, and gave him until the end of the day Tuesday to do so.
Almalki has dual citizenship in Canada and Syria. Before his incarceration, he paid fees of up to $15,000 U.S. to stay exempt from the military requirement, but he may no longer be allowed to do that because of his prison experience.
The Department of Foreign Affairs told CBC that it is trying to clarify what would be necessary for Almalki to apply for another exemption from military service, but he will not be allowed to stay in the Canadian embassy in Damascus to avoid reporting for duty.
The government's standard policy is that a person holding dual citizenship must obey the laws and fulfill the citizenship requirements of his home country while within its borders.
Family fears for his life
Almalki's family says military service could kill him.
"A healthy person would not fare well in the Syrian military, let alone someone who has been brutalized like he has [been]," said his brother, Dr. Youssef Almalki, who lives in Ontario.
Youssef Almalki said torture in prison left his brother with a broken foot, a damaged hip and psychological scars from long periods of solitary confinement.
While Canada's ambassador to Syria attended Abdullah Almalki's court proceedings and even met privately with the judge, Youssef Almalki said embassy officials wiped their hands of his brother's case on Monday.
"Apparently in that meeting they told him, 'We've done enough for you. Solve your own problems.'"
Youssef Almalki suspects some Canadian officials may be interested in keeping his brother from returning to this country because his case parallels that of Maher Arar.
Arar is another Syrian-born Ottawa resident, whose 2002 arrest in the United States and deportation to Syria is now the subject of a public inquiry in Canada.
"I don't think they want another Arar to come along," said Youssef Almalki.
Arar inquiry officials have said they would like Abdullah Almalki to testify if he returns to Canada during the course of the inquiry.更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
INDEPTH: Maher Arar
Abdullah Almalki (file photo)
Saying Canadian security officials caused his troubles, Abdullah Almalki told CBC on Tuesday that the Canadian government is morally obliged to petition the Syrian government to let him return to his home in Ottawa.
"I would expect that the prime minister calls his equal here and asks him to solve this problem and get me immediately back into Canada," the Syrian-born man said in an interview from the Canadian embassy in Damascus. "That is what I expect. Enough is enough."
Syrian police arrested Almalki in Damascus in May 2002, a few months after the RCMP raided his house in Canada as part of a national security investigation.
On the weekend, a Syrian court ended the 33-year-old engineer's prison ordeal by acquitting him of being a security threat. However, the court also ruled that he had to report for the 30 months of military service required of all Syrian men, and gave him until the end of the day Tuesday to do so.
Almalki has dual citizenship in Canada and Syria. Before his incarceration, he paid fees of up to $15,000 U.S. to stay exempt from the military requirement, but he may no longer be allowed to do that because of his prison experience.
The Department of Foreign Affairs told CBC that it is trying to clarify what would be necessary for Almalki to apply for another exemption from military service, but he will not be allowed to stay in the Canadian embassy in Damascus to avoid reporting for duty.
The government's standard policy is that a person holding dual citizenship must obey the laws and fulfill the citizenship requirements of his home country while within its borders.
Family fears for his life
Almalki's family says military service could kill him.
"A healthy person would not fare well in the Syrian military, let alone someone who has been brutalized like he has [been]," said his brother, Dr. Youssef Almalki, who lives in Ontario.
Youssef Almalki said torture in prison left his brother with a broken foot, a damaged hip and psychological scars from long periods of solitary confinement.
While Canada's ambassador to Syria attended Abdullah Almalki's court proceedings and even met privately with the judge, Youssef Almalki said embassy officials wiped their hands of his brother's case on Monday.
"Apparently in that meeting they told him, 'We've done enough for you. Solve your own problems.'"
Youssef Almalki suspects some Canadian officials may be interested in keeping his brother from returning to this country because his case parallels that of Maher Arar.
Arar is another Syrian-born Ottawa resident, whose 2002 arrest in the United States and deportation to Syria is now the subject of a public inquiry in Canada.
"I don't think they want another Arar to come along," said Youssef Almalki.
Arar inquiry officials have said they would like Abdullah Almalki to testify if he returns to Canada during the course of the inquiry.更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net