My conservative leanings

My love for the Labour government stretches only so far as to prefer them if it came to a straight choice with the Conservatives. But absolutely no further.

I do cling to what now appear increasingly quaint small 'c' conservative notions: such as the rule of law. If you break the law, I always thought, you get arrested and tried and, if found guilty, punished. There was a time, I seem to remember, when this was the British way of doing things.

Our increasingly bonkers government, however, has different ideas. Deportation to torture-loving foreign states now seems the procedure of choice, at least if Home Secretary Charles Clarke gets his way.

It seems unlikely that the supine Tory opposition will muster the courage to defend even the fundamental principles of the justice system. Depressing stuff.

Comments

[Blimpish]

Ah well, this isn't quite so clear cut on rule of law. Traditionally, the legal category of 'citizen' (subject, whatever) would have some substantive difference to the status afforded to resident foreign nationals. They count as guests, and their right to reside is determined by policy, not any moral entitlement. (Ah, for the days of Belmarsh...)

[Third Avenue]

You're right up to a point: a country does have the right to deport people who violate their visa regimes. But this is not really what is at issue here.

The government is dealing with people that any decent society cannot deport (because they will be tortured). The fact that the people themselves may not be decent is neither here nor there.

Faced with the fact that it is unable or unwilling to prosecute them under the normal rules of British justice (if they've broken the law, prosecute them. If they haven't, well what's the problem?), the government is resorting to a truly despicable policy.

All Western governments have been eroding civil liberties and basic principles of democratic states over the past few years - it's just that the Blair government is more zealous, and more reprehensible, than most.

On Belmarsh - hm, I doubt the two of us will see eye to eye...

[The Digester]

"It seems unlikely that the supine Tory opposition will muster the courage to defend even the fundamental principles of the justice system."

Ken Clarke to the rescue:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4203296.stm

[EU Serf]

.......The government is dealing with people that any decent society cannot deport (because they will be tortured). The fact that the people themselves may not be decent is neither here nor there.......

Just because there are problems with human rights in a particular country, does not mean that the individuals that we send there are at risk. In many cases I am sure they are of no interest to anyone back home at all. When they are of interest it is often because they espose violent change of regime, often in favour of a system that we would like even less than the current one.

Its a difficult call, but the alternative seems to be to accept anyone who makes it, however unsavoury they might be.