Rendition

The film Rendition starring Jake Gyllenhall and Reese Witherspoon is a fictional examination of the American practice of shipping terrorist suspects to foreign countries which have lax human rights laws. These "renditions" allow for torture which is not permitted within the United States.

As the film opened across North America a real-life rendition story continued to play out. A group of U.S. politicians apologized to Maher Arar, the Canadian who was flown from New York to Syria on vague suspicions of terrorism and without any legal representation or formal charges. Arar was flying on a Canadian passport and was on a stopover on his way home but he was simply spirited away to hell.While the Americans did this, it was with the assistance of the RCMP in Canada. Arar was tortured and brutalized in a Syrian prison and while eventually released and exonerated thanks to his wife's tireless efforts he may never be the same.

The movie Rendition has received mixed reviews, as should the shameful actions of the US and Canadian governments in the Arar case. Both of these countries hold to a rule of law and democratic principles which decry torture and denial of due process for those accused of criminal activity. And both countries were founded on Christian principles which uphold justice.