Abousfian Abdelrazik briefly appeared in court in Montreal on Tuesday so a judge could make sure he was actually back on Canadian soil.
Judge Russel Zinn ordered Abdelrazik to appear as part of the same decision that forced the Canadian government to bring the Canadian-Sudanese man back from Sudan, where he had been trapped for six years after being accused of being affiliated with al-Qaida. He was put on a UN no-fly list, and his passport had expired while he was there.
He flew back Canada on Jun. 28.
"I feel very happy because this six years of suffering has ended for me and for my family," he told reporters outside the court room. "I want those people who play a role in this matter to face justice. Not because I seek revenge, but because I want this not to happen to any Canadian citizen any more. Stop here. And I want to return to my normal life."
Lawyer Yavar Hameed said they had requested a meeting with foreign affairs minister Lawrence Cannon and public safety minister Peter van Loan to seek accountability from the government. Hameed did not say whether or not there would be a lawsuit against the government.
He also told reporters who put Abdelrazik on the no-fly list.
"He was listed by the United States," Hameed said.
Until his name is removed from the list, anyone giving him money, such as wages, is committing a federal offence.
History
Abdelrazik had returned to Sudan in 2003 to visit his ailing mother. While in Sudan he was arrested, and he says he was tortured.
While in jail his passport expired and he was put on the no-fly list. The RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service cleared him of any involvement with terrorism or crime, but the Harper government refused to issue him a new passport because he was still on the no-fly list.
In the 14 months prior to his return to Canada, he lived in the Canadian Embassy in Khartoum before Zinn ordered Ottawa to issue him new travel documents.
