ACLU In Court In Case Of South African Scholar Banned From U.S.

[struggle4progress]

Professor Adam Habib Among Many Writers And Scholars Denied Entry On Basis Of Political Views
NEW YORK - May 27 - The American Civil Liberties Union is in federal court today to present arguments in the case of a prominent South African scholar who was denied a visa and is barred from attending speaking engagements in the U.S. The government has denied Professor Habib a visa on unspecified national security grounds.

According to the ACLU, the government denied Professor Adam Habib a visa not because of his actions but because of his vocal criticism of U.S. foreign policy, and his exclusion violates the First Amendment rights of organizations that have invited him to speak at conferences in the United States.

"The government can't censor the ideas U.S. citizens get to hear and stifle debate with foreign thinkers by shouting 'national security' without a shred of evidence to back it up," said Melissa Goodman, a staff attorney with the ACLU National Security Project. "Professor Habib's exclusion is motivated by his political views and associations, not his actions, and we're asking the court to immediately end this unconstitutional ban on his entry to the country."

Habib is a renowned scholar, sought-after political analyst, and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research, Innovation and Advancement at the University of Johannesburg. He is also a Muslim who has been a vocal critic of the war in Iraq and some U.S. terrorism-related policies. In October 2006, the government revoked Professor Habib's visa without explanation. The revocation prevented him from attending a series of meetings with representatives from the National Institutes for Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Bank, Columbia University and the Gates Foundation. In October 2007, the State Department denied Professor Habib's application for a new visa. The State Department claimed that Habib is barred because he has "engaged in terrorist activities," but refused to explain the basis for this accusation or provide any evidence to support it ... http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/05/27-2