'Protected' witnesses feel abandoned

Back in 2001, "Mr. B." was lying on a mat on the floor of his Surrey house and listening to Sikh hymns called shabads. When he reached to flip the cassette over, a bullet ripped through the wall, whizzed past his pillow and barely missed his head.
The near-death experience came six years after he had gone to the RCMP with evidence he had in the Air India bombing case and months after charges were laid.
"The shabads saved me that night. I believe that," said Mr. B., whose real name is subject to a publication ban. "I phoned 911. Police came within five minutes. They took me away that night."
And that's how a three-year odyssey in the federal Witness Protection Program began for Mr. B., then 59 years old with two successful Surrey businesses.
About 1,000 Canadians are in witness protection. The program and witness security generally will be one of the issues examined at the Air India inquiry in Ottawa this fall.
Critics of the federal program say it needs revising, is under-funded and is not independent enough, leaving those within it completely reliant on the same police force that needs them to testify in high-profile terrorism or organized crime trials.
For Mr. B., a baptized Sikh suddenly separated from his wife, children and community, the move into the witness protection program was devastating. He was lonely and without anyone to share his faith and his life. He lost both his companies and was financially cleaned out.
"My health is not as good as it was before all this," he said.
He decided to return to B.C. and reunite with his family, despite the potential risk to his personal security.
28/09/07 Kim Bolan/Vancouver Sun/Times Colonist, Canada

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Categories: Air India - International Sep 2007, Foreign Sep 2007, Safety Sep 2007