Canada's Supreme Court ruled that refugees who face...

Canada's Supreme Court ruled that refugees who face torture in their homelands "generally" cannot be deported there, unless the evidence shows that their continued presence in Canada poses a serious security risk to the country.
In the ruling, which was watched worldwide to see how Canada would balance human rights against potential threats to national security, the court said that deportation of a person who might face torture "might be justified" under "exceptional circumstances." The court said those cases must be decided individually. "We may predict that [the decision] will rarely be struck in favour of expulsion where there is a serious risk of torture," it wrote.
In the global search for terrorist suspects that began after Sept. 11, many countries have begun reexamining rules on how suspects can be turned over to other governments. Many, like Canada, have policies against sending people to places where they will face torture or the death penalty.
The Canadian high court was considering the appeals of a Sri Lankan and an Iranian who were fighting government attempts to deport them to their home countries for alleged terrorist activities. Both men deny they are terrorists.
Manickavasagam Suresh was accused of raising money for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a separatist group in Sri Lanka that is defined by Canada and the United States as a terrorist organization. Citing procedural errors in the case against him, the court ruled that Suresh should not be immediately deported and had the right to another hearing.
But in the case of Mansour Ahani, the court said he could be deported to Iran, where the court said there was less evidence that he would face torture. He had sought refugee status in Canada, but Canadian authorities contend that he was trained as an assassin by the Iranian government and does not qualify for refugee status.
The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees praised the ruling. "We're happy that the supreme court has upheld that Canadian law and international norms reject deportation to torture," said legal officer Rana Khan, "and we will have to wait and see how this translates into practice in the future."
Elinor Caplan, Canada's minister of citizenship and immigration, said that the government will continue to make its case to deport Suresh. She said Ahani would be deported as soon as travel arrangements can be made.
Barbara Jackman, an attorney for both Suresh and Ahani, argued that deportation of the two men would violate Canada's charter of rights, which guarantees fundamental freedoms for Canadians and refugees.
Jackman said both men would be tortured or killed if they were sent home. "I think Ahani will be summarily executed," she said. "He will be seen as a traitor." She said Ahani gave confidential information to Canadian officials.
"When you look at how Iran is, I don't see how someone could make that decision. It is not a democratic government."
David Matas, who represented the Canadian Bar Association in an intervention against the government, said there is clear evidence that Suresh would be tortured if he were returned to Sri Lanka.