The Tories, like Michael Fallon, have attacked Jeremy Corbyn for not saying that he would back a drone strike against the leader of ISIS. What Corbyn actually said was that many drone strikes have failed to hit their intended target, or have killed innocent civilians on a large scale in the process. Others have argued that had Andrew Marr asked about those leaders being taken out by special forces, that objection does not apply. So, let's be clear, what the Tories like Fallon are saying is that they are in favour of the execution of individuals, on foreign soil, where British troops have no right or need to be, by those very same British troops. Moreover, they appear to be arguing for the execution of those individuals, without them being granted due legal process through the legal system. That is actually not called execution or capital punishment, its called murder pure and simple. The logical conclusion of the Tories statements is that the next Tory government will reintroduce the death penalty!
If British troops are involved in a legally declared war, and enemy combatants are killed as a result of fighting that is a normal process of war. However, as seen recently, if individuals, such as captured, or injured enemy combatants are killed in cold blood, by British troops, that is murder,a nd those troops can be charged for such crimes. British troops asked to murder ISIS leaders, not in combat, but simply in cold blood as, individuals, by targeted assassination, should know clearly whether the people who are telling them to commit such murders will be the ones who find themselves in court for having given those orders, or whether as is always the case, it is those troops who have to do the politicians dirty work for them, who will not only be the ones getting killed and injured, but will also be the ones ending up in court, whilst the politicians go scot free, and take whatever credit they can.
What Tories like Michael Fallon are telling us, is that they are sending British troops to fight in an undeclared war, in a country that is not at war with Britain, and has made no attacks on Britain, and that those same troops are also being asked to murder people in cold blood in that country. In this case its Syria, but, as seen in recent years, it could be almost any country around the globe where Britain chooses to send troops, often as junior partner to the United States. Let's remember that its not Syria that is sending its troops, or even Syrian terrorists to fight in Britain. Quite the contrary, Jihadi John, and thousands of the other ISIS and Al Qaeda/Al Nusra and other fighters went to Syria from Britain.
If Britain really wanted to fight terrorism, it would stop sending Islamic terrorists, like Jihadi John, to fight in Syria, just as it would stop sending weapons to the Gulf Monarchies, who provide the weapons and financial backing for those same terrorists.
But, if Tories, like Michael Fallon, ar now in favour of murdering in cold blood individuals in foreign countries that have not declared war and have no beef with Britain, how is that different from what Vladimir Putin does, who sends his forces, and special agents to murder his opponents in Britain and other foreign countries? Once again we see the way that the Tory government under May, Fallon and others is prepared to silence any opposition, by whatever means they see necessary, just as does Putin, or Erdogan and other dictators.
Moreover, what the Tories are proposing is murdering people in cold blood without those individuals being arrested, charged and given due process in the courts. So, what is stopping the Tories equally executing its opponents in Britain in exactly the same way. After all, we know that a Tory government used the SAS and other special forces to assassinate members of the IRA in the 1980's, in that way? Of course, murdering their opponents in Britain, might cause a bit of a stir, so they could at least cover it up by at least going through some process of superficial justice for its opponents.
If the Tories are in favour of cold blooded murder of their opponents in foreign lands, why do they not openly now execute after due legal process Islamic terrorists held in Britain. How can they ask British troops to act as executioners in Syria, and elsewhere, on people who have not been tried or convicted, and yet they will not act as executioners themselves, of convicted terrorists in Britain? As usual, the Tories want others to do their dirty work for them, away from the public gaze, but will not get their hands dirty at home.
At the moment, they cannot introduce capital punishment in Britain, because its not permitted for EU members states, but once Britain is outside the EU, the Tories will be free to reintroduce capital punishment again, in line with their traditional hang 'em and flog 'em mentality. After all May's Tory government is basically the same as a UKIP government, as May has stolen all of UKIP's clothes. And UKIP leader (at least at the time of writing, but that could have changed again at tome of posting), Paul Nuttall, has already said that he would introduce a referendum to bring back capital punishment.
2 comments:
To reintroduce capital punishment in the UK, the Tories would have to withdraw not just from the EU but also from the ECHR, which would make the UK a pariah state (as the only internationally recognized European state outside the ECHR is Belarus). This would probably make it impossible for the UK to trade with any EU country!
But leading Tory Brexiteers have said that is precisely what they want to do! Moreover, how can they justify such double standards whereby it is fine to implement a death penalty on people in a foreign country, who have been given no trial or other legal process, and yet would not execute those same people if they were in the UK?
There current policy is that its okay to execute Jihadi John by drone strike or special forces if he in Syria and posing no immediate threat to Britain, but not okay to put him on trial and execute him as a threat to Britain if he's living in London!!!
And the Tories, criticise Corbyn for not adopting their ridiculous double standards, and cowboy, shoot first ask questions later mentality.
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