MILNEWS.ca News Highlights – 20 Apr 12

• Khadr Boy (1)  “Convicted al-Qaida terrorist and killer Omar Khadr is coming home. Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said Thursday the government won’t block the transfer of Khadr from a cell in the Caribbean to a Canadian prison. Toews squelched speculation the government was considering using a clause in the International Transfer of Offenders Act to keep the 25-year-old, Toronto-born Khadr out of Canada on national security grounds. “Under the International Transfer of Offenders Act, he is a Canadian citizen. He is also a Canadian citizen under the Charter which entitles him to come back to Canada, eventually,” Toews told QMI Agency. “The issue is when does he come back to Canada? That’s a determination I have to make and I haven’t made any decision in that respect yet.” ….”
• Khadr Boy (2)  “U.S. congressman Allen West denounced transferring Omar Khadr to Canada as “unconscionable” Thursday, and warned the convicted terrorist and murderer could be back on the battlefield soon. West, a Republican from Florida who is a rising star in the GOP and also a 20-year army vet who served in both Iraq wars and Afghanistan, has led the charge against sending Khadr back to Canada. “This is unconscionable and is yet another reason why the Obama administration must be defeated in November,” West said in a statement to QMI Agency and Sun News Network Thursday. “Based upon the reports of recidivism with released Islamic terrorists, we can expect his return to the battlefield.” ….”
• Khadr Boy (3)  “A Canadian law professor who has closely watched Omar Khadr’s case says the convicted war criminal will one day walk free on Canadian soil and Ottawa will have to pay compensation to Khadr for its role in his imprisonment. Khadr, 25, has been held in Guantanamo Bay since 2002, when he was captured in Afghanistan following a firefight with U.S. troops. He was 15 at the time. Khadr pleaded guilty in 2010 to five war crimes charges as part of a plea deal, and received an eight-year sentence but was eligible to return to Canada last October to serve out the rest of his sentence. Canada has so far dragged its feet on approving Khadr’s repatriation, but on Wednesday Ottawa acknowledged Washington had filed a formal request to send Khadr back to Canada and it was considering the request. If Khadr were to serve out his entire sentence in Guantanamo, he would technically then be able to return to Canada as a free man. However, if he returned now, he would likely serve out the remaining portion of his sentence in a Canadian prison. University of Ottawa law professor Amir Attaran said either way, it’s only a matter of time before he is released. “He’s going to go free, there’s no doubt about that,” Attaran told CTV’s Canada AM on Thursday. “I think it will be sooner rather than later because you have to remember the Supreme Court of Canada in the past has said the trial process he had in the U.S. was unfair.” ….”
• Khadr Boy (4)  Toronto Star editorial:  “…. as Canada’s allies successfully lobbied to free their nationals from Gitmo, the Harper government wilfully neglected Khadr. It never forcefully protested his mistreatment, criticized his prosecution, or asked for leniency. It took the obtuse view that justice was taking its course. It washed its hands of a young Canadian, leaving him to his fate. It failed a citizen, and disgraced itself.”
• Khadr Boy (5)  Winnipeg Free Press editorial:  “…. Raised in a family aligned with al-Qaida and associated with Osama bin Laden, Khadr has spent 10 years behind bars. His plea bargain has established him as a terrorist and the Canadian government should be vigilant upon his release. It can’t do that if he serves his time and is freed by the U.S. Repatriating him can allow officials to keep watch as long as necessary.”
• Syria  “Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird says Canada supports sending United Nations observers to violence-wracked Syria to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid. Speaking from a “Friends of Syria” meeting in Paris Thursday, Baird said the first step is to make sure that can be done safely. While the group of Western and Arab ministers did not discuss military intervention, Baird did not rule out military support for an observer mission. Baird stresses the group backs efforts at holding the regime of President Bashar Assad accountable for its actions. He said the ministers are urging Syria to comply fully with a peace plan by special envoy Kofi Annan, which calls in part for a complete ceasefire in its bloody crackdown on dissent ….”
• PM’s wife Laureen Harper Honourary Patron of the Animals in War Dedication Project – more here
• F-35 Tug o’ War (1a)  “Members of the public accounts committee gathered in Ottawa Thursday for a special meeting to discuss the auditor general’s report on Canada’s contentious F-35 purchase plans. But opposition members faced roadblocks in launching a comprehensive probe as the majority Conservatives used their power in the all-party committee to postpone discussion of who would appear until next week. The meeting also provided no guarantee from the ruling party whether a planning session Tuesday, where potential witnesses will be discussed, would be open to public scrutiny or remains behind closed doors as many committee meetings have been since the last election. “They’re looking to control the witness list,” New Democrat MP Malcolm Allen told The Canadian Press. A motion to study the issue and begin hearing from witnesses next week was filed by Liberal public accounts critic Gerry Byrne, with the backing of other opposition members of the committee. “Liberals called this meeting to get down to the business of hearing from witnesses on the F-35 immediately upon the return of Parliament,” Byrne said in a statement ….”
• F-35 Tug o’ War (1b)  “Conservative MPs have rejected a public debate about which bureaucrats and military officers will appear in front of parliamentarians to discuss the F-35 controversy, including allegations that some of them misled cabinet ministers and Canadians. The House of Commons is closed for a two-week break, but the opposition convened an emergency meeting of the public accounts committee of the House on Thursday to launch its investigation into the planned purchase of new fighter jets. All MPs agreed to hear from Michael Ferguson, the Auditor-General whose report earlier this month ignited the controversy over the cost of the planned military purchase and the lack of clear information provided to Canadians. The NDP and the Liberal Party then tried to get an agreement on other witnesses, including Canadian Forces officers and bureaucrats who were directly involved in the file. However, Conservative MPs used their majority on the committee to avoid any discussion of specific witnesses ….”
• What’s Canada Buying?  “To provide the Department of National Defence with Advance Combat Uniform that includes one Direct Action (DA) Shirt (Crye Precision Combat Shirt Model G3 or equivalent with Field Elbow Pads), one Special Reconnaissance (SR) Shirt (Crye Precision Field Shirt Model AC or equivalent with Field Elbow Pads) and Pants (Crye Precision Combat Pant or equivalent with Combat Knee Pads) in standard and special sizes. Quantity (Delivery within 200 km from Petawawa, Ontario):
  A firm quantity of 3,800 units of each item ….” – a bit more detail in bid document extract (6 page PDF) here
• “The Royal Canadian Navy says the “rudimentary” upkeep and design shortfalls of a $3.5-million floating barrier in Halifax harbour led to its removal and costly repairs. The navy removed the fence in December and January, saying it was conducting planned maintenance. However, a navy briefing memo from a logistics officer says the fence wasn’t able to withstand the stormy conditions of the harbour and was also damaged by the buildup of marine organisms since being installed in 2007. The spiky, orange barrier — strung for 1.6 kilometres in semicircles around frigates and destroyers — has been a prominent feature in the harbour. One of its purposes is to repel possible attacks by small vessels piloted by terrorists. “Unfortunately, the design was flawed and the material utilized was too weak to withstand the harsh conditions of Halifax harbour,” wrote navy Lt. Dan Saunders, a logistics officer in a Sept. 29, 2011, briefing note to his superiors ….”
• Stuart Landridge, R.I.P.  “The military police video of Stuart Langridge’s lifeless body hanging by a belt from a rail in his tiny barracks room is chillingly and sometimes touchingly detailed. He’s wearing a white T-shirt decorated with Chinese characters and the arms emerging from its short sleeves look well toned. His eyes are open. His feet are so close to the floor that had he changed his mind after jumping from the chair that stands by his body, he could have stood on his toes, removed the garrote and lived to fight another day. As the camera pans his tiny room, a dispassionate voice describes its contents: there’s a pack of cigarettes, a lighter, a floor messed with clothing strewn near a bag and drawers and a wardrobe mostly empty. There’s shampoo and a bar of Irish Spring soap by the shower stall and a small, cuddly teddy bear on his windowsill. And there’s the suicide note addressed to his mother and stepfather — a suicide note they would not know existed until 14 months later because the military didn’t tell them about it. “I don’t deserve any kinda fancy funeral,” he wrote in a postscript, “just family. TY.” ….”
• “North Island College (in British Columbia) announced a program Thursday that will allow members of Canada’s regular and reserve forces to earn academic credit for their rank, making them eligible for promotion within the military. The college is teaming up with the University of Manitoba to allow military students to pursue their studies even when they have to transfer to another location, and to provide academic credit for their military experience. The education and training that goes into a military member’s rank is documented, so it’s relatively simple to convert into educational credits, said college president Jan Lindsay. “My philosophical belief as both an educator and college president is we have a really big responsibility to ensure that our students not only get a quality education but they can apply that education to achieve their – goals,” said Lindsay on Thursday ….”
• “The Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of National Defence, and the Foreign Affairs Minister, John Baird, participated in a joint meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Foreign and Defence Ministers on April 18-19, in Brussels, Belgium. The NATO Joint Foreign and Defence Ministers meeting focused on a wide range of issues, including NATO operations, NATO reform, and efforts to deliver on defence capabilities for the Alliance. These discussions are particularly important as Allies make final preparations for the NATO Summit in Chicago, to be held on May 20-21, 2012 ….”  More in the Backgrounder here

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