Posted on 10/27/2006 12:50:40 PM PDT by SmithL
GENEVA -- Washington's new anti-terrorism law could end up violating international treaties protecting detainees, with some provisions denying suspects the right to a fair trial, a U.N. rights expert said Friday.
Martin Scheinin, the U.N. expert on protecting human rights in the fight against terrorism, said the Military Commissions Act signed into law earlier this month by President Bush contains provisions "incompatible" with U.S. obligations to adhere to treaties on human rights and humanitarian law.
"One of the most serious aspects of this legislation is the power of the president to declare anyone, including U.S. citizens, without charge as an 'unlawful enemy combatant' — a term unknown in international humanitarian law," said Scheinin, a legal expert from Finland.
As a result, he said, those detainees are subject to the jurisdiction of a military commission composed of military officers — rather than a civilian court of law.
He also deplored the denial of the habeas corpus rights of foreigners — including legal, permanent U.S. residents — to challenge the legality of their detention, "in manifest contradiction with" the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, a treaty the U.S. ratified in 1992.
Another concern, Scheinin said, is the denial of detainees' rights to see evidence that could exonerate them if the evidence is deemed classified. That, he said, "severely impedes the right to a fair trial."
Brooks Robinson, a spokeswoman for the U.S. mission to international organizations in Geneva, said the law was written to specifically address those concerns. Robinson said the law was drafted "in consultation with and in response to concerns by our allies and partners."
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
UN Expert. Now there is an oxymoron
"With all due respect, sir, and taking into account your exalted position on the payroll of the United Nations, we'll protect civilization as we see fit."
Socialism still overrides security in some minds.
Has the UN ever enforced successfully anything? Except for a very few, the UN is made up of mostly of socialists, marxists, and communist countries. We should encourage and reward free enterprise, not totalitarian governments. I think that the UN should be dissolved. Then we could start over with democracy as a requirement for entry.
F***K a bunch of UN experts, an oxymoron if I have ever heard one.
That's worth including in the keywords.
UN Expert. Now there is an oxymoron
----
Yes, that caught my eye too. Well, since they are either thugs, thieves, communists, dictators, Islamics, or other undesirables, I guess it is easy to be an expert in the U.N.
This is just one more leftwing whackjob, hoping to put together a case to someday 'slobadan' President Bush.
LIE!
Now there's a statement to leave one in a quandary via a drastic change of rhetoric from the U.N. /s
"...U.N. expert on protecting human rights..." I had the same thought as you when I read that --try having this guy hand out his UN business cards to any surviving Tutsis in Rwanda.
The UN doesnt control the US. Tough shyte UN.
The MCA applies to alien unlawful enemy combatants. Not US citizens. This "expert" is a fucking idiot.
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