Canada bans outspoken anti-war British lawmaker

Antaletriangle · 03-20-2009, 06:55 PM

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/...MnIYAD971SAVG0
By ROB GILLIES – 2 hours ago March20

TORONTO (AP) — Canada has banned an outspoken anti-war British lawmaker from the country on national security grounds, officials said Friday.

George Galloway is well known in Britain for his pugnacious rhetoric and his opposition to the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. He was due to give a speech in Toronto on March 30.

A spokesman for Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said Canadian border officials made the decision because he constitutes a national security threat.

The government will not overturn the decision for someone "who only recently bragged about providing financial support for Hamas which is a banned terrorist organization in Canada," Alykhan Velshi said.

Galloway has also celebrated Taliban soldiers fighting Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan, Velshi said.

Galloway called the ban outrageous.

"This is a very sad day for the Canada we have known and loved — a bastion of the freedoms that supporters of the occupation of Afghanistan claim to be defending," Galloway said.

"This has further vindicated the anti-war movement's contention that unjust wars abroad will end up consuming the very liberties that make us who we are."

Galloway was expelled from the Labour Party in 2003 for urging British soldiers not to fight in Iraq. He formed his own party, Respect, and won re-election to the Commons in 2005.

In 2005, Galloway created a spectacle on Capitol Hill by denouncing U.S. senators while testifying before a committee that accused his political organization and his wife of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in U.N. oil-for-food allocations from Saddam Hussein.

He denied the allegation, called the panel of senators a "lickspittle Republican committee" and accused them of "the mother of all smoke screens."

In 2007, he was suspended from the House of Commons for 18 days after being accused of concealing his financial dealings with Saddam's government.

An investigation found that a charity he set up had been partly funded by the Iraqi dictator.

Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Northern Boy · 03-20-2009, 08:30 PM

Galloway is less of a threat to Canada then are own political parties who want to sell us down the road with the NAU.

03-20-2009, 06:55 PM	#1
Antaletriangle Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: U.K. Posts: 3,380	Canada bans outspoken anti-war British lawmaker http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/...MnIYAD971SAVG0 By ROB GILLIES – 2 hours ago March20 TORONTO (AP) — Canada has banned an outspoken anti-war British lawmaker from the country on national security grounds, officials said Friday. George Galloway is well known in Britain for his pugnacious rhetoric and his opposition to the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. He was due to give a speech in Toronto on March 30. A spokesman for Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said Canadian border officials made the decision because he constitutes a national security threat. The government will not overturn the decision for someone "who only recently bragged about providing financial support for Hamas which is a banned terrorist organization in Canada," Alykhan Velshi said. Galloway has also celebrated Taliban soldiers fighting Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan, Velshi said. Galloway called the ban outrageous. "This is a very sad day for the Canada we have known and loved — a bastion of the freedoms that supporters of the occupation of Afghanistan claim to be defending," Galloway said. "This has further vindicated the anti-war movement's contention that unjust wars abroad will end up consuming the very liberties that make us who we are." Galloway was expelled from the Labour Party in 2003 for urging British soldiers not to fight in Iraq. He formed his own party, Respect, and won re-election to the Commons in 2005. In 2005, Galloway created a spectacle on Capitol Hill by denouncing U.S. senators while testifying before a committee that accused his political organization and his wife of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in U.N. oil-for-food allocations from Saddam Hussein. He denied the allegation, called the panel of senators a "lickspittle Republican committee" and accused them of "the mother of all smoke screens." In 2007, he was suspended from the House of Commons for 18 days after being accused of concealing his financial dealings with Saddam's government. An investigation found that a charity he set up had been partly funded by the Iraqi dictator. Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. Related articles Canada blocks outspoken British MP Toronto Star - 55 minutes ago Bernie M. Farber: A friend of terrorism is coming to Canada National Post - 1 hour ago Canadian Immigration bans British MP The Canadian Press - 2 hours ago

03-20-2009, 08:30 PM	#2
Northern Boy Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: On this Rock Posts: 1,390	Re: Canada bans outspoken anti-war British lawmaker Galloway is less of a threat to Canada then are own political parties who want to sell us down the road with the NAU.