In a very strong statement, Iraqi justice minister Abdel Hussein Shandal accused the United States of denying Iraqi officials access to Saddam Hussein for the purpose of interrogating him in preparation for his trial.
The U.S. countered by saying that Iraq needs to develop a court system that is strong and independent; the judicial tribunal that the Iraqi government wants to use to judge Saddam’s innocence or guilt was appointed by the now-defunct Coalition Provisional Authority.
Until the new Iraqi government vets out and appoints the judges themselves, the system that they want to use is open to charges of being under the influence of the United States, which would not be a good thing when deciding whether to sentence Saddam to life or death should he be convicted of the very serious charges against him.
Before they go after big fish like Saddam, they should deal with some of the small fry first, get some experience and work the bugs out of their system. The last thing they need is a show-trial for Saddam, which would undermine the Iraqi judicial system.
No comments:
Post a Comment