There is no significant US evidence against Arar

There are good reasons to think that Gonzales and Chertoff have no significant evidence against Arar. My reasons for thinking this are as follows.

The extensive O'Connor inquiry after more than two years investigation found that Arar was not a security risk and did not have any links to terrorism.

Stockwell Day the Canadian cabinet minister in charge of security saw the US evidence that the inquiry did not see but did not change his mind about Arar not being a security risk. NOTE: The US refused to co-operate with the Canadian inquiry, itself suspicious. Stockwell Day is pro-US policy and in favor of friendlier and strong relationships with the US even to the point of being in favor of Canadas participation in the Iraq war. If Day had the remotest reason to agree to the US position he would have. He has enough decency not to try and earn brownie points with the US when he saw the emperor had no clothes.

Arar has an appeal pending on his suit against the US. The US position would be weakened if it admits an error in assessing Arar. The US immigration in its decision to deport Arar ruled that Arar was a member of Al Qaeda. The US authorities will not take that back even though they know they have no proof of it.

Finally the O'Connor inquiry revealed that US authorities were constantly asking Canadian intelligence for further evidence against Arar. They even asked whether he would be held and charged if sent back to Canada. Canadian authorities said no that he was only what they called a person of interest. Leahy is wrong when he says that if Arar were sent to Canada he would be held and investigated. He would be scot free as he is now. No charges have even been laid against Arar. The US had no evidence to lay charges even though their immigration found him to be a member of AL Qaeda. Imagine he is a member of Al Qaeda and they did not charge him but simply deported him. What a farce!

Gonzales, Chertoff, and Wilkins are quite willing to further damage an innocent person's reputation, a person already tortured, and also maligned through leaks in the Canadian press earlier. Senator Leahy needs to start his own inquiry into the Arar affair and put US policy in order. THe majority of the American people I am sure do not favor a policy that protects people who have maligned and wronged an innocent person but allows them to get away with it through uttering the mantra of national security.