Saturday 07 December 2024

News Analysed, Opinions Expressed

OFFBREAK

Quo Warranto Obama

 

Obama and the United States expect the world to clap, dance and rejoice at this execution.


The world has become Obama’s village. National boundaries, sovereignty of nations does not matter to the US President. The strongest and fittest developed power can usurp rights in any territory. Otherwise, how does one explain that a President of United States, Barack Obama can sign a decree of death? Today, it is Osama bin Laden, ostensibly the enigmatic leader of the Al Queda. Hated by all and eulogised by a few Islamic fanatics.  Hunted and shot dead like a wild boar as ordered by the President of a country claiming to be the greatest democracy wedded to international law and justice systems.

The developed world and the majority in the neighbourhood hold that a terrorist who targets civilians and a monster whose hands are stained with blood of innocent people does not deserve a due process! Not even a capture though unarmed.

From where does the civilised Obama draw this authority?  Obama and his military can enter in any part of (his) global village and get the decree executed. Obama and the United States expect the world to clap, dance and rejoice at this execution.

At this stage I recall Priyanka Gandhi   meeting Nalini Sriharan, her father’s assassin behind the walls of Vellore prison to make peace with the violence in her life. “I refuse to let anger and violence over power me”, were the words which exhibited   rare grace and humanity in public life.

There is absolutely no justification for Osama’s inhuman acts and atrocities. But, Osama never claimed his faith in freedom, democracy, equity and justice. He never, like Obama took pride and honour on the platform of democracy and justice. Osama’s image is of a ruthless fundamentalist and a saviour of Islam as he fancied.

Obama rolls an extrajudicial killing policy, killing without any kind of due process. The majority hold this as the legitimate power of a US president. Admitted, terrorism has no boundaries and has no rules and processes of law. But the answer to that is not Obama terrorism. Let us not turn our minds pitch black.

Abbottabad….. was not a war zone.  United States was not involved in a war combat operation. There was option of capture. There was option of surrender. Under international law there are commonly accepted legal ways to capture such people including the bad ones like Osama. Pakistan was an ally of US and not a hostile territory.

Amnesty International, the American Civil Liberties Groups, the United Nations Security Council are sulking in pitch darkness.   Would the use of military force by India justified if intelligence shows training grounds and pastures for terrorists in foreign territories such as Pakistan? Would United States resort to a similar action if Osama was housed in any other territory?

I know that the word terrorism blinds our thoughts. We should not be concerned about legality when dealing with a terrorist is the most natural reaction. Or the safest stand is to say that the action violates law and tenets of sovereignty of nations, but that was the right thing to do!

It is one thing to say that the monster has been amputated and express relief.  It is another thing to rejoice at the killing. Osama, being a leader of Al Queda does not make the murder of an unarmed less cruel and less barbaric. Killing of one leader sends a shock wave but does not make the jihadist movement less potent.

 

Disclaimer: Views expressed above are the author's own.



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Prabhakar Timble

Mr Prabhakar Timble is an educationist and a legal expert. He has served several educational institutions, especially as the Principal of Government College at Quepem, Kare College of Law in Madgao as well as couple of Management Institutes. He was also the State Election Commissioner of Goa.

 

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