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For whom do Canada's national security agencies work? In theory, the RCMP and Canadian Security Intelligence Service answer to the federal government and through it to the Canadian people. But the RCMP and CSIS, it appears, were far more forthcoming with Washington than they were with their own government. Defence Minister Bill Graham, Canada's foreign affairs minister at the time of Maher Arar's year-long imprisonment, is frank in describing his frustration.

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A new security department should be set up with annual COMPLETE public access to all records. If they suspect someone of a security issues, then go to the arresting authority with your proof and have that person(s) arrested. If after a year there is not enough proof, but only suspicion, then the records should still be released (maybe with a 1 time option to hold the release for up to one more year) so that the regular public law enforcement agencies, and the public can take over the responsibility for protecting ourselves. If there are "undercover" operatives that will be exposed, then get them out of harms way and give them new identities if necessary.

If Arar *was* a real terrorist threat, then the fact that he is now a publicly known figure has the affect of either clearing him or preventy him from taking any further terrorist actions or plans.

I really don't see the need to put the priority on capturing those who might be terrorists over the need to prevent terrorism ... the way CSIS and the RCMP are now acting, they could care less if a terrorist group were allowed to operate and in the process kill thousands of people, as long as in the end they have someone to throw in prison ... I'd much prefer that the whole terrorist group get away clean and never see a second of punishment but were unable to act on their terrorist plans because the public and the local regular law enforcement agencies found out what they were up to.

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Former politicians with a deep commitment to civil liberties and human rights, including Warren Allmand, Lloyd Axworthy, Allan Blakeney, Ed Broadbent, Joe Clark, Madeleine Dalphond-Guiral, Marcel Gagnon and Flora MacDonald, have united in a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper urging him to hold a public and independent review into three cases of Canadians who were detained and tortured abroad. "The case of Maher Arar is well known," notes MacDonald. "But Ahmed El Maati, Abdullah Almalki and Muayyed Nureddin endured similar circumstances that go beyond coincidences or mistakes."

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