civil rights

Ontario, Canada

Hello,

At the moment I am flat broke but can use a lawyer, as I work through my troubles, pro bono until the time my situation changes

If it is not too much trouble, could you please review the snapshot of my situation and decide if you can in any way help me or know someone who can on a continuing basis

Here it is: Twitter - Rashid_Jamal Can't happen to you? Think again. Press release http://bit.ly/uq4sZ Incomplete video http://bit.ly/eEl3I‏

Please do not hesitate to call or e-mail me with questions or for clarification

Awaiting a positive response

Merci & thank you,

Rashid Jamal,
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Tel) 1-(519)-885-0903
Email) srajamal@hotmail.com

Can't happen to you? Think again. Rashid Jamal's webcam recorded Video - July 28, 2009, 01:56 PM

YouTube (Incomplete video)

Can’t happen to you? Think again Greetings my fellow Canadians…and to some degree our American neighbors, I would appreciate few moment of your time introducing myself. My name is Rashid Jamal from Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Please bear with me as I learn public relations as you learn about me. As you can see from the presentation my resources are stretched thin. Like…really, really stretched thin. Please pardon the presentation. Important thing is that you get to know me. What happens to me can indeed happen to you. Yes you. Irrespective of your race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, ethnicity, creed and yes political stripe. With my Muslim sounding name and an accent I’m as Canadian as you can get in terms of values we uphold. At home and abroad. What happens to me is unCanadian. And for our American friends un-American. Two sisterly nations bound by our shared history, values and geography. In a nut shell, I am a political detainee. I have been for at least past 5-1/2 years. To cut long story short as I navigate through multitude of laws including privacy, national security, and national interest issues, without any legal representation I must add, some very private and proprietary blog found its way in the corridors of power. Here in Canada as well as in the United States. Blog that I honestly believe contained harmless and very mainstream views that on one hand some were not very pleased with and on the other hand some were delighted by. It never has been my intention to cause any controversy or seek publicity. If anything I just wanted to and still want to be myself and live my life just the way you would want to live your life. Do what you enjoy most. Be the best you can be. I don’t seek publicity. In fact I love my privacy. I wanted to and want to move on with my life. What followed was a game and around the clock surveillance like the infamous tactics that were employed behind iron curtain. Except this time gadgets and methods are of digital age. Hounding much more profound. Results much more abusive and disgusting. Modern day lynching if you would call it that. Especially, if done with the intention of inflicting maximum suffering and pain on law-abiding citizens going about living there lives. It is widespread. And it could be happening to you without your knowledge. Once you sense them you are practically pinned down on the ground and paralyzed into inaction. For 4-1/2 years I have been forced to live in virtual house arrest, in near total isolation and incommunicado. I have too much sweat, blood and tears invested in this country to see all go to a waste. Something good has to come out of it for all of us as Canadians as well as for our American neighbors. It might be natural for people to draw symmetry between my case and war on terrorism or civil rights cases that will ring a bell. There might be similarities but it isn’t anything like we have ever seen before. In my case and to me this has been and still is a battle between David and Goliath. And I intend to win it because I have done nothing wrong. My act is together. And my conscience is clear. This is one very personal dimension of the situation where everything nearer and dearer to me has been drawn into it. Other dimension is us as Canadians, our national interests, our security, and our place in the world equal to any other law-abiding nation in the world. Canada’s ability as a state to live up to its responsibilities to its citizens from coast to coast to coast. It concerns our rights and responsibilities not only as Canadians but also as a respected member of a global community. As a Canadian it would concern me a great deal as it would concern you, that our allies and friends treat us as allies and friends behind the scene. Instead of a lackey who can be taken for granted. An unjust stance passed on to me and my loved ones by Canada as a state. I have been footing bill for Canada for past 5-1/2 years. I have been patient for far too long. I can do that no more. I stand on the verge of bankruptcy. Emotional, physical and financial scar on my loved ones, friends and well-wishers have been enormous. Idea isn’t to cause us any embarrassment but to take the issues head on and come out a better country in the process for all of us including our American friends and allies. It is time Canada live up to its obligation as a state and live up to its responsibilities to all Canadians on an equal footing with other countries in the world, including United States, rather than using Canadians as proxy for defining our bi-lateral relationship. It is time we take the issues head on. Given the strength of people-to-people bond between us and the Americans, I am confident Americans will understand this new dynamics. We are not just talking about charter of rights and freedoms having been suspended but atrocious acts having been committed in the name of national interest and national security with respect to me. I will, as I have, live up to my obligations as a Canadian. It is time Canada as a state lives up to its obligations and come in touch with me so that we can sort out the issues between us. It is time Canada as a state acknowledges me. My attempt at retaining a lawyer and establishing a dialogue with the state has been futile. This may all sound rather insane but believe me you, reality is stranger than fiction. As I speak with you, I am showing tremendous restrain in what I say. Suffice it to say there is politically independent commission both here in Canada and the United States that has been doing its work for past 2-1/2 years. The one in United States is ready when we are. There have been Supreme Court rulings on both sides of the border. I have reasons to believe they are favorable to me. They have to be given the straight forward nature of my situation. I ask that those rulings be complied with both in the United States as well as here in Canada. I have no desire to become a political circus as I have been for past number of years. I ask that politicians refrain from politicizing the case. Now, that is a contradiction in terms but that must be the case. It is my understanding that the blog, many of the names and faces, national interest issues, national security issues and privacy considerations are protected under privacy laws and Supreme Court rulings. I request media to accord everyone including my loved ones their utmost privacy not just in Canada and the United States but also elsewhere. I would request that everyone including my loved ones remain calm, maintain a low profile and wait for authenticated information in due time. There are security concerns as well. So please do not approach any of them. You could be arrested. Problem originated in Canada and U.S. and it will be resolved here. That is the only sensible thing to do. Now that I have a public face, my friends and acquaintances who wish to work with me, and were being prevented from doing so, can now come in touch with me from both sides of the border. I would also like to invite TV magazines of the scope like 60 minutes in the United States and Fifth Estate in Canada to tag along with me as we uncover the aspects of the matter that is of public interest with respect to laws on both sides of the border as well as holding people to account given the findings of these politically independent commissions that have been working in concert with the highest courts of the land and international agencies. This is not an issue for 24 hour news cycle. I have confidence in Canadian and US justice system. But our system works well and culture of rule of law kicks in, certainly for those who have been rogue for far too long, when it is done under the watchful eyes of the public. At this point, with the assistance of friends, investigative reporters and their legal armada, I wish to sort out the issues, with commissions on both sides of the border, that are of national security, our privacy and civil rights nature from the issues that are of public interest. (Reporting on and by Rashid Jamal, 1-519-885-0903, srajamal@hotmail.com)