Some Tories want traitors tried for high treason
OTTAWA - The Conservative Party will debate later this month whether to automatically strip violent traitors of their citizenship and try them for high treason.
Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's Calgary Southeast riding association tabled the resolution. It will be up for debate at the party's national convention here on the weekend of June 10.
While none of the 80 resolutions on the convention's agenda would be binding on the Conservative government -- even if they pass -- they do offer a glimpse into the mindset of some of the party's members.
The treason resolution reads: "The Conservative Party of Canada believes that any Canadian citizen ... who commits treason by taking up arms against the Canadian Forces or the Forces of Canada's Allies automatically invalidates his or her Canadian citizenship or claim to Canadian citizenship and, if and when returned to the jurisdiction of the Canadian Legal System, should be tried for high treason under the Canadian Criminal Code."
High treason carries a life sentence.
And while the resolution doesn't name Omar Khadr, some have dubbed it the "Khadr resolution."
Khadr, a Canadian citizen, pleaded guilty to throwing a grenade that killed a U.S. Special Forces soldier in a July 2002 firefight in Afghanistan. Khadr was 15 at the time. He also admitted he planted explosives for al-Qaida. In exchange for his guilty plea, he received an eight-year sentence. This fall, after serving one year at a prison at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Khadr will be eligible to apply to serve out the rest of his sentence in Canada, and as part of the plea deal, the U.S. government agreed to support his transfer request.
Alex Neve, the secretary general for Amnesty International Canada, says the resolution reeks of the Conservative Party's unwillingness to recognize the human rights concerns in Khadr's case.
"I'm quite confident that something of this sort would never see the light of day in terms of law-making. It just has too many obvious shortcomings and flaws. It violates the Charter of Rights; it violates international human-rights standards; it's unworkable and impractical," he said. "But even though I'm not concerned about this suddenly becoming a bill in the House of Commons this fall, I think it is an unfortunate indication of the sentiment that many within the Conservative Party hold with respect to this case."
Fred DeLorey, the Conservative Party's director of communications, said the party doesn't comment on resolutions before they are debated at the convention.
Since 1977, the Canadian government has revoked the citizenship of 66 people, and officials hinted Tuesday the process can be a long one.
Celyeste Power, a spokeswoman for Kenney, said the minister's office won't comment on the resolution, but added, "citizenship revocation is an important tool used to protect our country and Canadians. It protects the value of Canadian citizenship and ensures the integrity of our citizenship process."