Pubdate: Fri, 15 Jun 2007
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2007 The Ottawa Citizen
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Steven Edwards
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)

ANTI-DRUG OFFICIAL FACES NARCOTICS CHARGE

Canadian Was Working With Afghans To Find Alternatives To Poppy Farming

UNITED NATIONS - A Dubai court will rule Tuesday on drug charges 
against a Canadian anti-narcotics official who was returning to 
Canada after his latest tour in Afghanistan helping farmers find 
alternatives to poppy cultivation.

Leading figures, including Foreign Affairs Secretary of State Helena 
Guergis, have praised Bert Tatham for his work, and Canadian 
officials and others say privately he is a victim of circumstance.

Prosecutors accuse Mr. Tatham, 35, of carrying 0.6 grams of hashish 
- -- an almost trace amount that his lawyers said had inadvertently 
become attached to his clothing because of the nature of his work.

Dubai authorities also found Mr. Tatham in possession of two 
two-year-old dried poppy flowers, which have no utility to make opium 
or heroin, and said tests showed he had traces of narcotics in his blood.

Dubai is a transit hub for people travelling between North America 
and Afghanistan, but is also notorious among the seven United Arab 
Emirates for having zero tolerance towards drugs possession.

Canada has good relations with the Dubai government, and Mr. Tatham's 
family said they agree with advice they've received privately from 
Canadian officials, among others, to remain patient while the court 
process plays out.

"Out of respect for the judicial system in Dubai, we have tried not 
to interfere, and provided all the documentation and letters of 
reference that they've asked for," Chuck Tatham, Bert's brother, said 
from Toronto. "We're waiting until they work through it, and hoping 
they will come to the right decision, which is that he was not 
intentionally doing something wrong."

But with Mr. Tatham facing a sentence of at least four years in 
prison if convicted on counts of possession of narcotic substances, 
and possession in order to distribute them, the family is preparing 
to launch a campaign for his release if he is convicted.

Mr. Tatham, originally trained as satellite photo specialist, had 
spent several years in Afghanistan, working first for the UN Office 
of Drugs and Crime, more recently for a contractor with the U.S. 
State Department. He was returning to his home in Vancouver late 
April to join his fiancee and plan their marriage.

Arrested as he tried to pass through Dubai, he remains in detention 
in the emirate.

"He's been allowed some calls to us, and we have a family friend in 
Dubai who has visited him," said Chuck Tatham, 39.

Canadian consular officials have also been in contact with Mr. 
Tatham, delivering him reading materials, and helping him find a 
lawyer. The UN and Afghan officials have also submitted letters of praise.

"Mr. Tatham is a highly respected poppy eradication expert, and this 
is truly a situation of wrong place, wrong time," said one Canadian 
official closely involved in the file, but who asked not to be 
identified because of the sensitivity of commenting on an ongoing 
court proceeding.

"They say his blood shows traces of narcotic. Well of course it did. 
He was involved in poppy eradication and burning tonnes of it every day."

A request for comment from His Excellency Hassan Al-Suwaidi, UAE 
ambassador to Canada, went unanswered yesterday.

A three-judge panel will decide Mr. Tatham's fate. One government 
source said there is some evidence prosecution went ahead initially 
because of communication problems due to language differences.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman