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Friday, 26 February 2010 16:59 |
| | The Jewish Chronicle front page today revisits the pro-Israel lobby’s persistence in securing a change to the law on universal jurisdiction, before the end of this parliamentary term, to allow Israeli and other foreign politicians accused of war crimes to travel freely to the UK immune from arrest and prosecution.
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The JC today reports:
‘Gordon Brown has personally intervened to unblock the logjam over a change in the law that allows local magistrates to issue arrest warrants for visiting foreign politicians accused of war crimes.
‘The JC understands the Prime Minister is determined to press ahead with the law change before the election.
‘The Prime Minister pledged his support for Ms Livni but did not immediately prioritise the issue.
‘However, he has now called in key ally and fixer Tom Watson to advise on the issue. The MP for West Bromwich is known for his strong views in support of Israel and challenged Mr Straw on the floor of the House of Commons earlier this month.'
"Will the threat of prison for visiting Israeli politicians make it easier or harder for the government to secure peace in the Middle East?" he asked. Mr Straw would only say that action was being "considered" by the government.
‘On Tuesday, the Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council met Mr Straw to express their frustration that the law change had taken so long.
‘A strongly-worded joint statement issued after the meeting by Vivian Wineman, president of the Board of Deputies and Mick Davis, chair of the JLC executive committee, said: "The Secretary of State was left with a clear understanding of the strength of feeling in the community and the urgent need to resolve this anomaly.
‘"He repeated the government's commitment to find a solution but was unable to [say] a remedy to this problem would be implemented by the government before a general election."’
The paper adds that, ‘Amnesty International and the Muslim Council of Britain have also campaigned against a change to so-called "universal jurisdiction", which they believe will undermine Britain's ability to pursue people for prosecution at the International Criminal Court.’
According to a World Public Opinion poll conducted in November 2009, 54% of Britons expressed support for the rule of international law.
The JC’s reporting of the PM’s personal intervention in pushing a change to the law on universal jurisdiction will sit uneasily with British Muslims who are frequently exhorted to ‘do more’ to aid the fight against terrorism and radicalization, and to exercise greater vigilance in their communities. Contrast these exhortations with the Government’s manoevres to excuse state sponsored terrorism and to protect those accused of war crimes from prosecution. The double standards only serve to reinforce the narrative employed by violent extremists, that our foreign policy is biased.
As the timetable for introducing a change to the law tightens, and the pro-Israel lobby continues to apply pressure on the government, those that want the law to remain unchanged, with UK magistrates’ ability to issue arrest warrants against those for whom a prima facie case of involvement in war crimes exists, they need only ask themselves what efforts they made, and continue to make, to ensure that the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and Justice Secretary are left ‘with a clear understanding of the strength of feeling’ in society on a proposed change to the law?
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