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 Editorials | Opinions | March 2008 
Harsh Realities for Jailed Brenda Martin
 The Record
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| | Pictured with friend Debra Tieleman, Brenda Martin has been imprisoned in Mexico for nearly two years, accused of money laundering and criminal conspiracy. (Photo courtesy of Debra Tieleman) | | |
Prime Minister Stephen Harper continues to face criticism for his government's handling of the case of Brenda Martin, the Trenton, Ont., woman who has been awaiting trial in a Mexican jail for more than two years. In fact, the federal government has done as much as anyone could reasonably expect it to do for this unfortunate individual.
Martin, 51, was arrested in February 2006 on charges related to a massive Internet fraud carried out by Canadian Alyn Waage. Martin worked as a cook for Waage in Mexico and denies having anything to do with the scam, which bilked investors of $60 million. Waage himself, who is serving out a 10-year prison sentence in the United States, has sworn an affidavit saying she's innocent.
Parliamentarians of all stripes have taken up Martin's cause. This week two Conservative MPs travelled to Mexico and say they obtained Mexican assurances Martin's case will be fast-tracked.
There is certainly cause for concern about Martin's current situation. Life in a Mexican jail is surely difficult for her as she lives in fear and uncertainty in a small dormitory with 11 other people. She is reportedly in a fragile emotional state, under constant watch because she is considered a suicide risk.
There is also concern about the case itself. It is impossible to know, at this pretrial stage, what weight to give Martin's statements of innocence, and those of her employer, who was convicted of what is in essence a massive lie. However, it is certainly worrying to learn that the judge in this case has apparently already written a 500-page ruling before the trial, and certainly before Martin's own defence has even had a chance to be aired.
Nonetheless, there appears to be little more the Canadian government can do. There have been more than 100 contacts between federal government representatives and either Martin or Mexican officials. Canadian officials at the highest levels -- including Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier, and possibly even Harper himself, have spoken to their counterparts about her case, urging fair and swift treatment. Other Canadians, including former prime minister Paul Martin, and several MPs, have visited her and telephoned. There is no doubt that Mexican officials, from President Felipe Calderon on down, are intensely aware of her case.
But as Harper himself points out, Mexico is a sovereign country, and this case is one for the courts, which must be free of political intervention. There would be an uproar, and swift resignations, were Harper, or any other politician, to step in if they disagreed with a judge's rulings here.
We must remember, too, that unfortunately Martin's case is hardly unique. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, about 1,750 Canadians are today imprisoned in other countries and the Canadian government has the same responsibility to them that it has to Martin. The bulk of these prisoners are in the U.S., but others are in jails in countries as diverse as China, Australia, Thailand and Peru, mostly on drug, immigration or fraud charges.
Many doubtless are guilty as charged. Others have been dealt with in ways many Canadians will consider harsh. For example, Kitchener mother Loan Ngoc Bui is serving 40 years for drug trafficking after a police officer in Illinois stopped her car and found 3,710 ecstasy pills hidden in it. Her boyfriend, who was driving, says Bui knew nothing of the drugs.
But Americans take a different view of drugs than we do in Canada, and as a result, Bui is serving out a sentence harsher than a Canadian court would dole out even for a convicted murderer.
The federal government has lived up to its obligations to Martin, who has had the benefit of dozens of high-level interventions, something most Canadians imprisoned abroad never see. Ottawa must continue be vigilant, and ensure her case is dealt with swiftly and fairly, but beyond that, Martin's fate lies in the hands of a Mexican judge. |
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