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On December 1st 2005, on the corner of Kent and Côte-des-Neiges,Montreal police officer Bernier from Station 25 shot and killed MohamedAnas Bennis, a 25-year old Canadian of Moroccan heritage, while in thepresence of three other police officers from the same Station. Morethan one year later, the events of that morning remain shrouded inmystery.

For over a year, the Bennis family has been trying to understand whathappened to Anas that morning. But instead of answers, they  aremet with secrecy, documents that are devoid of content,incomprehensible delays and explicit contempt.The police and the Crownprosecutor continue to deny the family access to the evidence andinformation related to Anas' death. "We feel like we are being lied to,that they are hiding things from us," says Khadija Bennis, Anas' twinsister and a member of the Justice For Anas Coalition.

The minister of Public Security Jacques Dupuis has endorsed thecontemptuous attitude of the police by intervening to suppress both thepolice and the crown reports.

Join us to remind him that despite the black outs and cover ups, wecontinue to demand JUSTICE!

WE DEMAND...

1. the immediate release of all reports, evidence and informationconcerning the death of Anas Bennis to the Bennis family and to thepublic;
2. a full, public and independent inquiry into the death of AnasBennis;
3. an end to police brutality and impunity.

Demands endorsed by:

• Action Anti-Raciste/Anti-Racist Action Montréal
• Association Bélagir
• Action des chrétiens pour l'abolition de la torture et lapeine de mort (ACAT)
• Action et solidarite pour la Colombie
• Association facultaire des étudiants en sciences humainesde l'UQÀM
• Association Vwa Zanset (Voice of the ancestors)
• Bloquez l'Empire Montréal
• le Centre de services de justice réparatrice
• le Centre des travailleurs et travailleurs immigrants/ImmigrantWorkers Center
• CKUT radio
• le Collectif opposé à la brutalitépolicière (COBP)
• le Conseil des églises pour la justice et la criminologie
• Haiti Action Montreal
• Head & Hands/À deux mains
• Kabataang Montreal
• La Ligue des Noirs du Québec/The Black Coalition of Quebec
• Mères Unies contre le Racisme/Mothers United against Racism
• l'Observatoire canadien pour les droits humains (OCDH)
• No One Is Illegal/Personne n'est illégal-Montréal
• NPD Section Québec
• Philippine Women Centre of Quebec/Centre des femmes Philippinesdu Québec
• Projet Genèse/Project Genesis
• Quebec Public Interest Research Group-McGill
• Quebec Public Interest Research Group-Concordia
• Québec Solidaire
• SIKLAB-Quebec Filipino Migrant Workers Organization
• Solidarité sans frontières/Solidarity Across Borders
• South Asian Women's Community Center
• Tadamon! Montréal
• 2110 Centre for Gender Advocacy
• United Muslim Students' Association of Montréal (UMSA)

You candownload a flier for thispicket by clicking here (legal size paper, three to a page, bilingual).


On Wednesday, April 11th, the Justice For Anas Coalition and theirsupporters will be holding a demonstration outside the Montreal officesof Jacques P. Dupuis, the Quebec Minister of Public Security. They willbe demanding that Minister Dupuis intervene to release all the evidenceand reports surrounding the police killing of Mohamed Anas Bennis onDecember 1st, 2005, and that a public inquiry be launched into thematter.

We are encouraging you to come out to the demo between 10am-1pm at 10St-Antoine east (metro Place d’Armes) and lend your support for onehour or more.

HOWEVER, if you can’t make it to the demo, we are asking that you take5 minutes out of your day on Wednesday to call, fax, or email MinisterDupuis’ office to support the demands of the Justice For Anas Coalition(contact info and a model letter are included below).Our demands are:

1. the immediate release of all reports, evidence and informationconcerning the death of Anas Bennis to the Bennis family and to thepublic;
2. full, public and independent inquiry into the death of AnasBennis;
3. an end to police brutality and impunity.

We feel that Minister Dupuis’ duty and responsibility to meet the first2 demands.Some basic questions to ask on the phone:

• If Mohamed Anas Bennis really did attack officer Bernier ofStation 25 with a kitchen knife as the Montreal Police say he did, whyhas the evidence of this knife not been shown to the Bennis family orto the public? If Bernier really did sustain injuries, why was thisevidence not revealed?
• Why was the video captured of the event by the security camerason the Bell building not released to the public?
• Why has there not been an independent and public inquiry intothis incident?

(Further background info can be found at www.justicepouranas.org)

Please cc’ all your email correspondence with Dupuis’ office tojusticepouranas@gmail.com.
You can reach Jacques P. Dupuis office in Montreal by

Phone:514 873-3500
Fax : 514 873-6597
Email : ministre@msp.gouv.qc.caOn the phone, be polite and patient, but also persistent. Make surethat you get your message across in a clear and effective way.

(Model letter)

M. Jacques P. Dupuis
Ministre de la Securité publique
10, rue Saint-Antoine EstBureau 11.39
Montreal (Quebec)
H2Y 1E2

M. Dupuis,
I am writing to you to bring to your attention the case of MohammedAnas Bennis. On December 1st, 2005 -- more than 16 months ago -- policeofficer Bernier from Montreal Police Station 25 shot and killed AnasBennis, a 25-year old Canadian of Moroccan heritage. Anas was killedoutside a neighborhood mosque at the corner of Côte-des-Neigesand Kent, just minutes from his home.

The police claim that Anas inexplicably attacked them with a kitchenknife. However, Anas' family and friends find this hard to believe.They are frustrated by the attitude of the authorities who refuse tomake the evidence available, including a videotape that captured theincident.

There has never been any public inquiry, but Quebec City policeundertook a closed investigation. On November 4th, 2006, the crownprosecutor decided that no criminal charges would be laid against thepolice officers, yet he has refused to provide a written copy of hisreport to the Bennis family. Likewise, the police report remainssecret, because you intervened to make sure it would be suppressed.

No satisfactory explanation for Anas' death by police has been offeredto the Bennis family. The mystery and secrecy surrounding this casereinforces the belief that Anas Bennis was killed by police in a caseof racial and religious profiling. As the Quebec Minister of PublicSecurity, we feel that it is your responsibility to bring to light manydetails surrounding Anas' death. 16 months is far too long to wait forjustice in this matter.

Finally, I am writing to you to in support the 3 demands of the JusticeFor Anas Coalition, which are;

1. the immediate release of all reports, evidence and informationconcerning the death of Anas Bennis to the Bennis family and to thepublic;
2. a full, public and independent inquiry into the death of Anas Bennis;
3. an end to police brutality and impunity.As Minister of Public Security, I feel that it is your duty to takeaction into the first two demands.

I thank you for your attention into this matter, and I expect a swiftresponse and prompt action to be taken to bring long-overdue justiceand closure to the Bennis family.

Sincerely,

(your name, address)

cc. Justice For Anas Coalition
justicepouranas@gmail.com

The Justice for Anas Coalition
514.342.2111
justicepouranas@gmail.com