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Ali Leghaei – Sheikh Mansour’s son – has started a petition, asking the Australian Minister for Immigration to accede to the directions of the United Nations’ Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) by reassessing his father’s case.

Click here or the pic to sign the petition now.

It’s been more than a year since Sheikh Mansour Leghaei was forced to depart Austarlia as an alleged security risk, having never been told what it was that he was supposed to have done wrong! Mansour lives quietly with his family but his friends in Australia have by no means given up on his return.

Complaints over Mansour’s treatment by the Australian government were made to the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) early in  2010, but we still await a final ruling.  The Austarlian government did eventually make a response to questions posed by the UNHRC. Sheikh Mansour’s team in Australia subsequently responded to the Australian government’s response. The case is before the UNHRC and we await a final ruling with a great degree of confidence.

In the meantime questions continue to be raised about the role of ASIO in Australia. They seem to be accountable to no one – pursuing people for reasons that often prove to be completely erroneous, and making assessments of people that can destroy people’s lives but which they never have to prove.

The following 7.30 Report segement was put together by Greg Miskelly:

The October 21st deadline has past and the Australian government has not responded to the United Nations Human Rights Committee regarding their treatment of Sheikh Mansour Leghaei.

Scott Ludlum of The Greens has questions pending in Parliament, calling on the government to account for its actions.  Meanwhile Associate Professor Ben Saul has addressed members of the legal fraternity on this issue and has published a paper that gives a comprehensive examination of the legal dimensions of the case, entitled “The Kafka-esque Case of Sheikh Mansour Leghaei: The Denial of the International Human Right to a Fair Hearing in National Security Assessments and Migration Proceedings in Australia”

You can pick up a PDF version of Ben Saul’s paper here.

On Saturday June 26th we had a formal farewell at the Imam Husain Islamic Centre.  More than 1000 people crammed in – people of all faiths and cultures from across the region. On Sunday morning Mansour joined us at Holy Trinity Church to farewell his many supporters there.  That evening, despite Sheikh’s attempts to dissuade us from coming to the airport, more than 300 of us showed up to make our final farewells.

It was an emotional time.  Indeed, I find it hard to watch the video coverage below without the tears welling up again.

The story was also covered briefly on Ten News. You can see that here.

The fight does not end here. The Australian Government has until Ocotber 21st to respond to the United Nations Human Rights Committee and explain why they charged, judged and executed Sheikh Mansour without ever telling him what he’d done wrong.

If you have any ideas as to how we can put pressure on the Australian government to respond to the United Nations, submit them to the Fighting Fathers Forum (nb. you’ll need to use VIP code ‘NO HOMERS’ to register).

”It makes me sick to the stomach.” The quote is from me (Father Dave), as reported in Rick Fenley’s June 22nd article in the Sydney Morning Herald, “Time running out for sheikh told to leave“.

The quote is with reference to the way the Australian government persuaded the United Nations to withdraw their request for a stay on the deportation of Sheikh Mansour Leghaei, on the basis that they are not actually breaking up his family.

The government claimed that because they had given visas to Mansour’s wife and youngest son that they were therefore not damaging the family unit. Hoever, in reality, the Sheikh and his wife and daughter will be forced to head back to Iran with Mansour, thus leaving three sons in Australia and breaking the family in half.

As the article also makes clear though, the United Nations is still pursuing the Australian government over concerns that Australia has violated fundamental human rights treaties to which it is signatory in the way it has treated Sheikh Mansour (eg. the right of every person to a fair trial). The government has been given until October 21st to respond to the United Nations’ concerns.  Read the full article here.

Another major media outlet to cover the Sheikh’s story is Al-Jazeera. As well as the clip displayed below, Al-Jazeera is considering a full-length documentary concerning the Sheikh’s treatment.