Join Valentine’s Rally in Ottawa to Bring Hassan Home!

Canada, have a Change of Heart. Bring Hassan Diab Home!

What : A Valentine’s Vigil to Reunite Hassan with His Family in Canada
When : Tuesday February 9, 2016, 11:00 am
Where: Global Affairs Canada, 125 Sussex Drive, Ottawa (followed by a walk to the French embassy)

Please wear red, and bring flowers and Valentines!

In November, 2014, Dr. Hassan Diab was forcibly removed from Canada and imprisoned in France. Hassan is fighting false allegations leveled against him even though his physical description, his palm and hand prints, and his handwriting do not match those of the suspect in a 1980 crime that Dr. Diab has repeatedly denied involvement in, and condemned.

In other words, the French government is holding an innocent man. Thanks to an extradition law that fails to protect Canadian’s rights, Hassan faces the possibility of wrongful conviction and life in prison based on secret intelligence and discredited handwriting analysis. This nightmare is shared by Hassan’s family in Ottawa.

We are calling on Canada’s new Liberal government to reconsider Hassan’s extradition, declare it has had a change of heart, admit that the decision to extradite Hassan was unjust, and bring Hassan back to his home, family, and community in Ottawa.

Please join us as we present Valentines to Global Affairs Canada, asking them to have a change of heart, and then walk a short distance to the French embassy, urging them to also have a change of heart, recognize they have the wrong man in custody, and send Hassan back home.

Map:  https://goo.gl/maps/8PcTmpAsy782
Getting there: Take Bus 9 to the Global Affairs Building

If you cannot make it, please send a note to the Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Stéphane Dion, urging him to speak with his French counterpart about bringing Hassan home. Mr. Dion can be reached at stephane.dion@parl.gc.ca

Sponored by: Hassan Diab Support Committtee, diabsupport@gmail.com

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St. Valentine’s Day is a time to remember all those unjustly jailed. St. Valentine was a priest who was persecuted, tortured, jailed and decapitated by Roman Emperor Claudius because Valentine defied the prohibition on conducting marriages for young people. Claudius was concerned that married men would be less willing to give their lives in battle. Valentine’s last note from prison, “from your Valentine”, eventually became the basis for Valentine greetings.
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