The Globe, Canadian Press, Star, and CBC report from the appearances of the former president of the Nuclear Safety Commission, the former chair of the Military Police Complaints Commission and the former chair of the RCMP public complaints commission at a Liberal forum this morning. From the Globe’s account.

More diplomatic was Peter Tinsley, whose term as chair of the Military Police Complaints Commission, was not renewed last year. The commission made news for probing the Afghan detainee controversy, the same hot-button issue that many observers say forced the Tories to prorogue Parliament this winter.

“The perception has become widespread that something is not quite right in the system,” Mr. Tinsley said. Too often, he said, political “horsetrading” and unelected staffers play key roles in hiring and firing watchdogs that serve at the whim of the government they are appointed to criticize. ”The potential for abuse itself does not bode well for good governance,” Mr. Tinsley said.

As reported by the CBC’s Alison Crawford, the former chair of the RCMP Public Complaints Commission, the former Military Police Complaints Commissioner and the former head of the Nuclear Safety Commission will speak at a Liberal-organized forum on governance next week.

Kennedy had wanted to see through expected legislation on providing civilian oversight for the RCMP.  His reports included blunt criticism about how Mounties take notes, handle Tasers, investigate themselves, etc. And in the last days of his tenure, Kennedy lashed out at RCMP Commissioner William Elliott, accusing him of trying to delay the publication of several of his reports.

The government also refused to renew Tinsley’s appointment, even though he wanted to continue his work on the Afghan detainee issue. And Keen, who was fired while serving her second term as head of the CNSC, accused the natural resources minister of ignoring her advice to close the Chalk River nuclear facility.

Canadian Press delves deeper into what Canada did, or didn’t, do about Asadullah Khalid, a notorious Afghan governor. The former chair of the Military Police Complaints Commission reiterates his concerns about government secrecy. The Foreign Affairs Minister concedes that tracking detainees remains a “challenge.”

“The May, 2007, arrangement states that the government of Canada will be notified prior to the release of a Canadian-transferred detainee by Afghan authorities. However, notification has been a challenge,” Mr. Cannon conceded in a written and little-noticed answer delivered to Parliament’s order paper last week, weeks after ministers had first faced and deflected questions on the subject at committee hearings.

… military sources have admitted that at least some detainees have been captured multiple times. The impact on morale of capturing Taliban fighters, transferring them to Afghan custody and then facing them again in combat is severe, according to Canada’s top diplomat in Kabul. The “release of detainees is having a profound and demoralizing affect on our soldiers,” Ambassador William Crosbie wrote in a Sept. 19 memo.

The Star reports that it was Peter Tinsley, commissioner of the Military Police Complaints Commission, who allowed today’s release after selective leaks elsewhere. The NDP’s Paul Dewar says that what has been redacted in one report is a general reference to the possibility of “torture” and other abuses.

“By redacting just that one sentence, the government was able to cover up knowledge of extrajudicial killings and torture in Afghanistan,” Dewar said, citing this as an example of overzealous censorship. ”This is precisely why Canadians can’t trust any document with redactions from this government.”

Lost somewhat in all the discussion of Richard Colvin’s testimony, is the statement of Peter Tinsley, chair of the Military Police Complaints Commission, that immediately followed Colvin’s appearance.

Here is that statement. Continue…