Diab, Robert
Research
Human Rights and National Security
As late as 2010, the US remains committed to the indefinite detention of some fifty Guantanamo detainees, the program of extraordinary rendition, and even the targeted killing of its own citizens. Canada too remains complicit in torture or cruel and degrading treatment in cases that include those of Khadr, Abdelrazik, and Afghan detainees. My doctoral research examines the problem of why extreme measures persist and why reform efforts have largely failed to curb them. Part of the problem, I suggest, is a deeper conflict of perceptual frameworks about terror among activists and jurists, on the one hand, and supporters of extreme measures on the other. The aim of my research is to investigate the differences in the content of these frameworks, in order to identify the assumptions and beliefs that inform the use of torture or targeted killing. I argue that we can only curb these measures by effectively addressing the beliefs that motivate them.
I hope to provide a basis for a more effective strategy for reform of extreme practices in national security. I also seek to shed light on the broader significance of deeper shifts in our legal and political culture. For example, what does it mean for the future of the rule of law in Canada, and other western nations, that a majority of the population has become indifferent to these rather radical departures from due process and other liberal legal values?
I did my Master's in Law at UBC and looked at how Canadian law had changed in response to 9/11. I was struck by certain facets of Canada's counter-terror policy, especially in relation to foreign suspects of terror. After expanding my thesis into a book titled Guantanamo North (Fernwood, 2008), I wanted to go further - to pursue the question of what motivates extreme measures in national security, and why reform efforts have largely failed to curb them.
I've had a very positive experience at UBC, and the opportunity to work with tremendous scholars and mentors -- most closely with Professors Wesley Pue and Robin Elliot, but others as well. There are also so many interesting things happening at UBC - events, symposia, research centres - so many intellectual resources to draw upon.
To try to make the most of the opportunity to connect with people, attend events, and make use of the many resources available to you at UBC.
