The Hindu : Amnesty blasts U.K.

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 13, 2003

International

International

Amnesty blasts U.K.

By Hasan Suroor

LONDON DEC. 12. Amnesty International has accused the British Government of running a "Guantanamo Bay in our own backyard" by creating a parallel system of criminal justice for foreigners suspected of terrorism.

The criticism provoked a furious reaction from the Home Secretary, David Blunkett, who threatened to resign from his 20-year membership of the human rights group calling it a "very sad day for Amnesty International and a very sad day for me as a patron.''

In a damning report on Britain's new anti-terror measures, Amnesty attacked the policy of locking up foreigners indefinitely without charge or trial, and said it amounted to a "perversion of justice''.

The report, entitled "U.K. Justice Perverted under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001'', pointed out that 14 foreign nationals were languishing in high-security prisons and six of them had been in detention for nearly two years without a trial.

Kate Allen, Amnesty's U.K. director, said: "The Act is discriminatory-there is one set of rules for British citizens and another for nationals of other countries. It effectively allows non-nationals to be treated as if they have been charged with a criminal offence, convicted without a trial and sentenced to an open-ended term of imprisonment. In no respect can this be considered just. This legislation has created a Guantanamo Bay in our own backyard."

Mr. Blunkett, in turn, accused Amnesty of supporting those who posed a threat to Britain. "I didn't join Amnesty to see them support those who, through every part of the system that we have set up, have been accorded and recognised as being correctly certified as being a threat to us.''

This is the latest in a series of Amnesty reports in the past one year criticising the British Government policy on several issues, including asylum and arms sales. Its criticism came amid concern in the Muslim community that it was being targeted in the name of fighting terrorism.

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