Connolly fasts to show solidarity with the Caravan Against Torture
By Jon Yaneff

Gary Connolly is in the middle of his week-long fast in support of the Caravan Against Torture campaign.

Gary Connolly has been an advocate for various social justice issues for years.

The veteran religion teacher at Robert F. Hall Catholic Secondary School in Caledon East is participating in a week long fast (May 2 to 9) to show solidarity with the Caravan Against Torture campaign, which is hosted by the Toronto Action for Social Change (TASC).

This past week, the Caravan (with about six people) has made its way from Toronto to Ottawa (May 1 to 8), with numerous stops to educate local communities about Canadian complicity in policies and practices that result in the torture of human beings.

The Caravan is the brainchild of a social activist in Toronto, Matthew Behrens, and is aimed at bringing awareness to the general population of Ontario.

Connolly joined the Caravan Saturday before they headed to communities such as Orillia, Lindsay and Peterborough on their way to Ottawa.

The fast is a collaboration of three social justice groups at Hall, which include the North South Awareness Project, the No Sweat Committee and the Non- Violence Committee.

The North South Awareness Project has been running at the school for 11 years by students and staff. Representatives from the project go to Nicaragua each year to help build schools and deal with social justice issues. The No Sweat Committee deals with the sweatshop issues around the world. The Non-Violence Committee are a group dedicated to stopping violence on an international and local level. The No Sweat and Non-Violence committees have been formed during the last five years.

"The dedication has been incredible," said Connolly of the many staff members and students who have made the fast campaign project come alive in the school community. "I really commend them on this because it is unique when several people take on a campaign of this nature."

"But, remember, the fast isn't the focal point here, it's only a minor aspect of the entire campaign," he added. "It's about the people who have been unfortunately tortured."

Connolly, the social justice groups and other staff members, will spend their time during this fast in the school chapel educating and linking five issues raised each day by the Caravan Against Torture.

The first issue is the need for a full public inquiry into the role of Canadian officials in the detention, interrogation and torture of three Canadian citizens, Abdullah Almalki, Ahmad El Maati and Muayyed Nureddin. These three men experienced years of untold suffering in Syrian and Egyptian dungeons that continues today even though the men are back in Canada.

The second dealt with findings by the Security Intelligence Review Commission that CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) uses information obtained by torture.

The third issue is the refusal of the federal government to speak out against torture and other inhuman acts, such as issues in Guantanamo.

The fourth issue deals with the continued Canadian working relationship with the U.S. base School of Assassins or WHINSEC (Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation). This school helps train foreign soldiers, Connolly said.

The final issue is the CIA hosting rendition to torture flights, which deals with Canada sending people back to their original countries that they feel don't belong here. Most likely when they get sent to their countries they will be tortured by their home state.

Fasting is not new for Connolly involving social issues. He previously participated in a one-week fast in 1997 to protest the Bill 160 issue, which involved the restructuring of the educational system.