Banned Brit hurls insults at Canada’s immigration minister

[Harvey Specter]

OTTAWA — George Galloway, the British MP who’s been declared persona non grata by the Harper government, once demanded that Britain’s Labour government block a visit by far-right French politician Jean-Marie Le Pen.


Galloway, an outspoken opponent of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, was informed Friday he won’t be allowed into Canada for a scheduled four-city speaking tour because he led a convoy that delivered humanitarian aid to Hamas officials in Gaza earlier this month.


Canada considers Hamas a terrorist organization. In a letter, Robert Orr, the immigration program manager at the Canadian High Commission, told Galloway his “material support” for Hamas makes him inadmissible under Section 34 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.


Galloway has vowed to fight the ban in court. “That’s the way the right-wing, last-ditch dead-enders of Bushism in Ottawa conduct their business,” he sneered in an article he wrote in Saturday’s Guardian.


In it, he described Jason Kenney, the minister of citizenship and immigration, as a “gay-baiter, gung-ho armchair warrior, with an odd habit of exceeding his immigration brief.”


Kenney could overturn the ban imposed by border security officials, but has stated he has no intention of doing so.


Being banned by Kenney, wrote Galloway, “is like being told to sit up straight by the hunchback of Notre Dame or being lectured on due diligence by Conrad Black.”


But in 2004, the shoe was on the other foot. Then it was Galloway who argued, unsuccessfully, that David Plunkett, then Britain’s home secretary, should prevent Le Pen, the aging leader of the French National Front party, from entering Britain.


“Le Pen should not be allowed to set foot on to British soil at any time,” he said then.

“If the Home Secretary allows into this country someone who denies the Holocaust and who is on record as hating all Muslims, he will be siding with the neo-Nazi far-right against multicultural Britain.”


As well, there’s no sign Galloway objected last month when Britain denied entry to Geert Wilders, a Dutch member of Parliament who has compared the Koran to Mein Kampf and blamed Islamic texts for inciting the 9/11 terrorist attacks.


In his Guardian article, Galloway vowed that “minister Kenney notwithstanding, I will be heard — one way or another.”


In fact, the controversy has caused a spike in ticket sales for Galloway’s speech at the Bronson Centre theatre on April 2, organizer Joel Harden said Saturday.


“I think we could be swamped. We can’t keep enough tickets out there,” he said. “We might even need an overflow room.”


He said organizers are confident they’ll sell out the venue, which holds 900.


“There’s nothing more popular than a banned book or a banned speaker,” noted Harden, who thanked the government, tongue in cheek, “for their help in promoting the event.”


He said organizers are still hoping the government will let Galloway into Canada, which he visited without incident in 2006. On that visit, he attracted nearly 1,000 people to a speech at Carleton University.


If the ban stands, organizers will set up a large screen on the Bronson Centre theatre’s stage and beam in Galloway’s 45-minute speech from a studio in the United States, where he begins his speaking tour Monday.


Wesley Wark, a security expert at the University of Ottawa, said Canadian officials have the legal authority to prohibit Galloway’s entry.


“Clearly anyone who provides financial support for Hamas is in violation of the act,” he said, adding: “Of course, there’s always a judgment call as to whether you decide to impose (the law) or not.”


The Americans have also designated Hamas as a terrorist group, but so far have not barred Galloway from entering the country, Wark noted.


Errol Mendes, an expert on human rights law at the University of Ottawa, expressed concern that the broadly worded language in anti-terrorism laws allows governments to implement “other political agendas.


“The last thing any of our leaders should be doing is using it for domestic ideological and political purposes,” he said.


Mendes pointed out that various Canadian and American NGOs have delivered aid to the Hamas government in Gaza. “And no one’s gone after them.”


Ottawa Citizen

© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

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[StylinRed]

heard about this on the news its appalling that he's banned; probably the most intelligent politician ive heard speak

even if you dont agree with his views u have to appreciate his intelligence (he's a lawyer not from money and when the guy speaks its like he's got a PHD speech writer with him, but he doesnt read from anything pre-written) damn just look at the video when he was at the US Senate

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyyGoPerzWc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lINNad6Njs



a lot of people probably don't know who he is and might be like "fuck him!" but i implore you to hear him out

he isnt the only one who is/was a British MP that is against the US and its "war on terror"
unfortunately due to the UK's ties with the US during the war they had him ousted from the UK Parliament; he found his way back in with his own party though but subsequently left again



if you like his videos i suggest checking out Tony Benn also a British MP (jewish) and is anti-israel but his speeches and interviews are also very compelling

[Corey Darling]

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[PiuYi]

interesting
very persuasive guy

[Mancini]

Remarkable.

[Black SC2]

If he did support Hamas, in any way shape or form, he should be hung by his fog breathing nuts, regardless of how well spoken he is. Considering his opposition to allowing a Frenchman into Britain using similar grounds to his denial of entry to Canada, he should have no right to complain.

*I should add that I'd want to see compelling evidence of his involvement with Hamas, considering how he was previously railroaded.

[johny]

they should ban everyone from the UK. that place has been going to hell the past 10 years.

it's going to be Muslim run within the next couple years.

[El Bastardo]

Originally Posted by johny

they should ban everyone from the UK. that place has been going to hell the past 10 years.

I've seen that movie. I know what will happen 28 Weeks Later

[StylinRed]

Originally Posted by Black SC2

If he did support Hamas, in any way shape or form, he should be hung by his fog breathing nuts,

Hamas was democratically elected.... so its ridiculous to say states/politicians shouldn't deal with the government that the people want

the government of Hamas hasn't done anything wrong since being elected (a militant wing who israel attaches to Hamas has caused issues; sort of like Ireland & the IRA, Real IRA) regardless though


he's being accused of sending aid to Hamas for them to distribute to palestinians in Gaza which makes the most sense.... Abbas in the West Bank (who people are sending aid to) can't get the aid to the people in Gaza, especially in time, because Israel is choke holding any aid going in there

if Galloway is giving aid to Gazans through Hamas i applaud him because maybe with that medicine or food getting to the people sooner there will be less deaths of civillians

the whole "lets ostracize Hamas, and the people they represent, because they won't agree with the being of the State of Israel" is ridiculous