Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada (MP for SGI) stated, “Canadians do not want to legitimize torture under any circumstance.  The Conservative government is out of step with the values of Canadians.” 

This latest barrage on Human Rights reverses a previous Conservative policy, which once insisted the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) would discard information if there was any inkling it might be tainted.  They are now encouraged to use this information, even if it is obtained via torture.  Equally alarming is the admission that such information would not only be shared with Canadian police, but that CSIS would pass it to relevant foreign agencies as well. Amnesty International Canada decried the action saying, “Information obtained under torture has no place in the justice system, full stop.”

A federal inquiry by Justice Dennis O’Connor into the Maher Arar torture affair recommended in 2006 that policies include specific directions “aimed at eliminating any possible Canadian complicity in torture, avoiding the risk of other human rights abuses and ensuring accountability.”

According to the December 2010 directive, the government expects the spy service to “make the protection of life and property its overriding priority.”  It also states that in “exceptional circumstances,” where there is a threat to human life or public safety, urgency may require CSIS to “share the most complete information available at the time with relevant authorities, including information based on intelligence provided by foreign agencies that may have been derived from the use of torture or mistreatment.” 

Green Human Rights Critic Joe Foster commented, “If property is an overriding priority, that would explain overlooking abuses of Canadian mining companies and the push for trade, regardless of human rights concerns.”  He continued, “What about those being tortured, whether they be innocent or not? What about the threat to their human life?  Our values towards basic human rights are being eroded.  One can only surmise that the Prime Minister now condones torture if it provides the information he wants.”

“Canadian law enforcement and security agencies should focus on getting rid of information that bears the taint of torture, not on carving out exceptions for when it can be used,” said Alex Neve, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada.

“If we are to remain a civilized nation, then there is never justification for torture,” said Foster.

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A recent Access to Information Act request by the Canadian Press has obtained a directive from Public Safety Minister Vic Toews to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), instructing that in “exceptional circumstances” CSIS should “share the most complete information available at the time with relevant authorities, including information based on intelligence provided by foreign agencies that may have been derived from the use of torture or mistreatment.”

“Yet again Stephen Harper re-defines morality.  He used to insist that information obtained by torture was tainted and should be discarded.  When did this become tolerable?” asked Eric Walton, Green International Affairs Critic.   “We have seen over and over again that the information obtained by torture is notoriously unreliable and can lead to a disastrous course of action”  added Mr Walton.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has called for the US to stop using information obtained by torture, “In the face of this perilous climate, our nation must not embrace a morality based on an attitude that ‘desperate times call for desperate measures.’ There can be no compromise on the moral imperative to protect the basic human rights of any individual incarcerated for any reason.”

“A nation that values justice, respect for the rule of law, and civil liberty does not engage in torture. It is that simple,” said May.

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