Attorney General John Ashcroft is scheduled to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee today, his first such appearance since December.

A number of organizations, including the National Associaton of Criminal Defense Lawyers have issued a joint statement in hopes of encouraging close questioning of Ashcroft regarding the various tactics employed and powers assumed in the war against terrorism.

Kate Martin, co-author of Just the Facts, Mr. Ashcroft , an op-ed piece in today's Washington Post, helped draft the statement.

Among the principles addressed in the Statement are:

"Individuals should not be targeted for investigation or detention because of their race, religion, ethnic background or appearance, including Arab Americans, Muslims, or immigrants in general.

Immigration and other laws should not be selectively enforced based on race, religion, or ethnic background.

Secret arrests and secret detentions are unconstitutional and undemocratic.

Individuals seized in the United States should not be detained unless they are charged with either criminal or immigration violations.

Individuals charged with crimes or immigration violations should not be arbitrarily detained before trial on such charges.

Individuals should not be confined under abusive or unnecessarily restrictive conditions.

All persons have a right to effective assistance of counsel. There should be no interference with the attorney-client privilege.

Secret evidence should not be used to deprive individuals of their liberty or to try them for violations of criminal or immigration laws.

Military commissions should not be used to try civilians arrested in the United States.

The First Amendment protects the rights of peaceful dissent, free exercise of religion, and freedom of association. The government should not use its law enforcement powers to disrupt lawful political or religious activities, nor should it conduct investigations on individuals or groups based on their lawful religious or political speech or associations.

Secret searches and seizures, as well as secret wiretaps without necessary safeguards, are unconstitutional.

Governmental compilation of databases on individuals can pose severe dangers to freedoms of association, religion, and speech and the right to privacy. The government should not compile databases on individuals without procedures to protect against labeling them as suspected terrorists on the basis of their lawful religious or political activities, associations, or race, religion or ethnic background.

Due process protections must apply to any closure or wholesale seizure of the assets of charitable or religious organizations. "

The joint statement concludes with:

"We express our deep concern regarding the assumption of new powers by the executive branch that pose risks to human rights and civil liberties, particularly when such powers have not been authorized by the Congress and there has been no public debate concerning them."