Wednesday, April 16, 2003

Coalition in the Dock for war crimes?
'The sad truth is that prosecution has always been a function of power. No one seriously believes that Bush and Blair will be indicted. International law works only against weaker states. Big powers have an unmerited, but unassailable, immunity. Even if anyone were brave or rash enough to try to indict coalition leaders, the US has refused to ratify the statute establishing the international criminal court, which came into force on July 2 2002.'

No doubt this is true but the case should be mounted, run and publicised for its political impact. Find a lawyer or team of lawyers who will take the case and run it vigourously. Extended public discussion of the various illegal and criminal acts of Bush, Blair etc can only have a beneficial educative function, just as the extended Security Council diplomatic campaign waged by France, Germany and Russia could not hope to actually stop the war but did have a very important educative effect on world public opinion.

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