Quote:
Originally Posted by Xaccers
What has any of that got to do with demoralising our troops which is the comment you made?
You metioned order 17 yourself, so you are well aware that they are immune to Iraqi prosecution, however as you know, that does not mean they are totally immune to prosecution, as demonstrated by the cases involving several soldiers accused of abusing and murdering Iraqis, and most notibly the abuse that took place in Abu Ghraib.
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Post #192 sentence three specifically elaborates on the demoralizing comment which I made.
"If what Ms Beckett was saying had an ounce of truth about it then you can rest assured that those coalition forces who have witnessed the harder edge of Iraqi justice first hand would think twice the next time they pick up a weapon about what, if any, immunity they might be afforded in the event that they are accused of such crimes."
Nowhere, despite the phrasing of your question which brought about the above answer did I
"..suggest(ed) that her statement that its right that Saddam should face Iraqi justice will demoralise our troops".
Her statement was ""It is right that
those accused of such crimes against the Iraqi people* should face Iraqi justice."
* therein there is
no specific reference to Saddam Hussein. One can therefore assume that "those accused", in much the same way as the royal "we" is employed, would encompass
all of "those accused".
Order 17 was an agreement brought about under the auspices of the Coalition Provisional Authority (no longer an executive power since the formation of the Government). Since July the Iraqi national security adviser Mowaffaq al-Rubaie has been voiciferous in his objection to the continuance of Order 17 and has stated "There is no way we can accept CPA Order 17 anymore." His argument, which has been gaining creedence in the Iraqi parliament over the last three months, is that Iraqi justice cannot be seen to be fair and impartial for Iraqis when coalition troops are afforded the comfort blanket of their own national justice system in preference to same . Hardly a rocket science debate.
Beckett's comment has thrown fuel on an already smouldering fire of discontent amongst ordinary Iraqis, security personnel and parliamentarians.
I am already hearing that there have been requests for clarification from quarters much closer to the conflict than us (hence my posting on the matter).
As I said, I'm done with this.