Ten years ago, Ali Tahmourpour, an Iranian-born Canadian, was accepted into the RCMP’s training program for cadets. He flunked out after 12 weeks and has been fighting the decision ever since. He believes he was a victim of discrimination based on his background and religion (he is Muslim) and deserves another chance. The RCMP maintains he was dismissed because of poor performance.
Last year, in a high-profile decision, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal declared victory for the would-be Mountie. It ordered the RCMP to give him another shot and to pay him at least half a million dollars – an amount that was meant to cover several years of back pay, plus promotions. The force was also ordered to develop a cultural-sensitivity program.
Rights groups hailed the decision, which drew sympathetic coverage across the country. “People come to Canada to escape oppression, and you hope not to have to deal with that oppression again,” Mr. Tahmourpour was quoted as saying. “I just hope that after this, the RCMP can again become a national icon that we can be proud of.”
Almost no one covered what happened next. The RCMP appealed to the Federal Court, and last month a judge threw the whole thing out for lack of evidence. He found that the entire case against the Mounties rested on Mr. Tahmourpour’s feelings and perceptions. “A finding of discrimination must require more than just a complainant’s own perception that he has been identified as different,” he wrote. He ordered the human-rights tribunal to start all over again.
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What a joke. The only problem is that the joke’s on us (Canadian taxpayers).
I think the following, although perhaps not entirely applicable in this case, is well worth watching. he has numerous videos on his web-site although I don’t agree with his stated atheist beliefs (non-beliefs ??) .
http://dotsub.com/view/84f5c72d-b0ba-408c-ace3-8cc40995e011
I wonder… If the cost were tallied in, I’ll bet there’s been over a million spent on this guy already, even if he never gets a penny of compensation. He likely doesn’t have a cent so the chances of recouping court costs are effectively nil.