Supporters barred from secret hearing
Michigan Muslim leader denied bond
By Jane Cutter
and Andrew Freeman
Ann Arbor, Mich.
The public was denied access to the continuation of a bond
hearing for Ann Arbor Muslim leader Rabih Haddad on Jan. 2. A
Lebanese immigrant, Rabih Haddad had been arrested in his home
in front of his wife and four children on Dec. 14. The pretext
for his arrest was an alleged minor tourist visa violation, for
which people are very rarely prosecuted.
Supporters argue that his arrest is part of a wider roundup
of Arab and Muslim men in this country under the guise of
"fighting terrorism." Rabih Haddad is an active and very well
respected member of Ann Arbor's Muslim community. He has
represented his community in numerous public forums since the
Sept. 11 tragedy and has spoken on behalf of the needs of
Afghan refugees.
Haddad is also a co-founder and board member of Global
Relief Foundation, an Islamic charity that has provided aid to
Afghan refugees, as well as widows and orphans in other parts
of the world. The U.S. government has frozen the assets of the
GRF. Government officials allege that the group "supports
terrorism."
Over 300 supporters, including Haddad's immediate family,
were kept out of the Jan. 2 bond hearing, held in Detroit. They
were not even allowed into the parking lot of the courthouse.
So supporters established a spirited picket line, chanting,
"1,2,3,4, justice is what we're here for; 5,6,7,8, all the way
to Bush's gate; 9,10, 11,12, free Rabih from his cell!"
Among those barred from the hearing was U.S. Rep. John
Conyers, a ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee.
Conyers told demonstrators that the treatment of Haddad has
"highlighted everything that is abusive and unconstitutional
about our government's scapegoating of immigrants in the wake
of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack."
Other speakers at the support rally outside the hearing
included Michael Steinberg of the Michigan American Civil
Liberties Union, Phillis Englebert of the Ann Arbor Ad Hoc
Committee for Peace, and David Sole of the International Action
Center.
Over 4,000 people have signed petitions or written letters
in support of Haddad's release, including U.S. Rep. Lynn
Rivers, who represents Ann Arbor.
Inside the hearing, Judge Elizabeth Hacker denied bond to
Haddad. In doing so, she accepted the Immigration and
Naturalization Service's unsubstantiated claim that Haddad is a
danger to the community and a flight risk.
According to Haddad's attorney, Ashraf Nubani, the only
evidence presented to the court to "prove" that his client is a
flight risk is the fact that Haddad is the owner of a legally
registered hunting rifle. Salma Al-Rashaid, Haddad's wife, wept
as she heard the news that he had been denied bond.
Another hearing for Haddad is scheduled for Jan. 8. The
government plans to begin deportation proceedings against him
at that hearing.
Ann Arbor community members plan to introduce a resolution
to the City Council in support of Haddad's release.
Reprinted from the Jan. 17, 2002, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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