Mockery of Justice
Amal Chaaban
January 29, 2006
If one could say anything about the mockery that is the trial of Saddam Hussein in Iraq and be heard; they would say that this trial is an absolute mockery of justice. From the beginning the trial has been more like a circus than a courtroom proceeding. The trial began in 2005 but has been running in fits and starts. Not a single Judge seems to be able to control the court nor can they seem to quell Saddam Hussein long enough for anything to get done. In effect, Saddam Hussein is ruling the courtroom much the same way he ran the country.
The trial has now gone through 3 judges since its inception. The first three judges simply could not keep control of the court in the face of Saddam’s overbearing personality. The 4th and currently presiding Judge Rahman (see photo) has started his term in the court by taking a hard-line against the defendants and their lawyers. He began by advising that he would not tolerate any political speeches nor would he tolerate anyone who disobeyed his authority. Given that he is dealing with Hussein and his band of merry murderers, this was perhaps the best way to go.
Immediately after Judge Rahman made that statement, Barazan Al Tikriti – Saddam’s half brother and henchman – started complaining about his treatment. The Judge had him removed from the courtroom. According to one BBC reporter who was there, he was dragged out. This was followed by the defence lawyers walking out in protest (though of what I am not sure since they had been warned) and Saddam making a spectacle of himself by demanding to be tried in absentia and then being angry when the Judge agreed to his request.
Given the fact that the trial is sponsored by the U.S. government, one would think that they would manage to maintain some semblance of decorum or have the presence of mind to find a judge who will not be cowed by Saddam and his minions. This has proven to not be the case at all and in fact, the trial has been an exercise in futility and frustration. Some conspiracy theorists say that this is exactly the type of trial that the U.S. wanted because if Saddam is given a real trial, he will spill every single detail of every deal ever made with a U.S. government. People like Donald Rumsfeld –who has been video taped visiting Saddam more than once in Baghdad during the Iran-Iraq war – would not like such pesky details to get out. In fact, they would prefer if Saddam himself would just disappear into oblivion as well. Other conspiracy theorists say that Saddam is being kept alive as leverage against the Shi’ite majority government in Iraq. They can use him as a bogeyman should the Shi’ites ever decide that they no longer welcome “Coalition” (read: U.S.) interference. According to these theorists, the U.S. and Britain simply remind the Shi’ite ruling majority what it was like for them under the secular and Sunni Hussein and tell them that without their interference, Saddam could conceivably return to power. That mere reminder and threat are enough to quell any talk of having the U.S. and Britain withdraw.
Realistically, the only major losers in this mockery of a trial are the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis that Saddam et al tortured, maimed, raped and killed. The only people really on trial here are the witnesses who have to relive the horrors visited upon them by Saddam. These people are being made to endure both being in the same room with their tormentor and reliving possibly the worst times in their existence.
The witnesses who testify are hidden behind curtains to protect their identities. Why? Isn’t the man who killed their families and committed crimes against them the one on trial? Why do they have to hide? Conventional wisdom says that they are hidden away because should their identities become known, Saddam’s supporters may go after these people to exact vengeance for testifying against him. Unconventional wisdom says this is yet another tactic being used by the court to remind the people of Iraq how much power Saddam once held and to give the illusion that Saddam is still so dangerous and powerful that anyone who is testifying against him needs to be hidden for their own safety.
What kind of message is this sending to all the Iraqis who have suffered but not yet had their day in court? What must these people whose very blood cries out for justice think? Do they think that they will be fairly compensated when Saddam is convicted? Highly unlikely as Saddam will go to some country club prison as opposed to the hellholes he used to send his people to. At the very least, the fact that he is getting a trial when he used to summarily execute people who didn’t support him has to rub them the wrong way. It cannot be easy to watch this mockery daily while they remember loved ones and friends who simply disappeared. It certainly can’t be easy to watch Saddam simply take control of the court time after time. It can’t be easy for those who suffered in Abu Ghraib and places like it to know that Saddam is in a clean, dry, safe jail cell with 3 square meals a day and a garden to go to.
This trial is a mockery of justice but not because it is American funded and not because it is being run in a manner that a kindergarten student could emulate and improve upon. It is a mockery of justice because those who suffered under Saddam and still suffer with the memories are not getting the justice they so richly deserve. They instead are being hidden behind curtains, unable to face their tormentor and get some of their own back. They are being treated like the defendants instead of the witnesses. What a mockery.
The trial has now gone through 3 judges since its inception. The first three judges simply could not keep control of the court in the face of Saddam’s overbearing personality. The 4th and currently presiding Judge Rahman (see photo) has started his term in the court by taking a hard-line against the defendants and their lawyers. He began by advising that he would not tolerate any political speeches nor would he tolerate anyone who disobeyed his authority. Given that he is dealing with Hussein and his band of merry murderers, this was perhaps the best way to go.
Immediately after Judge Rahman made that statement, Barazan Al Tikriti – Saddam’s half brother and henchman – started complaining about his treatment. The Judge had him removed from the courtroom. According to one BBC reporter who was there, he was dragged out. This was followed by the defence lawyers walking out in protest (though of what I am not sure since they had been warned) and Saddam making a spectacle of himself by demanding to be tried in absentia and then being angry when the Judge agreed to his request.
Given the fact that the trial is sponsored by the U.S. government, one would think that they would manage to maintain some semblance of decorum or have the presence of mind to find a judge who will not be cowed by Saddam and his minions. This has proven to not be the case at all and in fact, the trial has been an exercise in futility and frustration. Some conspiracy theorists say that this is exactly the type of trial that the U.S. wanted because if Saddam is given a real trial, he will spill every single detail of every deal ever made with a U.S. government. People like Donald Rumsfeld –who has been video taped visiting Saddam more than once in Baghdad during the Iran-Iraq war – would not like such pesky details to get out. In fact, they would prefer if Saddam himself would just disappear into oblivion as well. Other conspiracy theorists say that Saddam is being kept alive as leverage against the Shi’ite majority government in Iraq. They can use him as a bogeyman should the Shi’ites ever decide that they no longer welcome “Coalition” (read: U.S.) interference. According to these theorists, the U.S. and Britain simply remind the Shi’ite ruling majority what it was like for them under the secular and Sunni Hussein and tell them that without their interference, Saddam could conceivably return to power. That mere reminder and threat are enough to quell any talk of having the U.S. and Britain withdraw.
Realistically, the only major losers in this mockery of a trial are the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis that Saddam et al tortured, maimed, raped and killed. The only people really on trial here are the witnesses who have to relive the horrors visited upon them by Saddam. These people are being made to endure both being in the same room with their tormentor and reliving possibly the worst times in their existence.
The witnesses who testify are hidden behind curtains to protect their identities. Why? Isn’t the man who killed their families and committed crimes against them the one on trial? Why do they have to hide? Conventional wisdom says that they are hidden away because should their identities become known, Saddam’s supporters may go after these people to exact vengeance for testifying against him. Unconventional wisdom says this is yet another tactic being used by the court to remind the people of Iraq how much power Saddam once held and to give the illusion that Saddam is still so dangerous and powerful that anyone who is testifying against him needs to be hidden for their own safety.
What kind of message is this sending to all the Iraqis who have suffered but not yet had their day in court? What must these people whose very blood cries out for justice think? Do they think that they will be fairly compensated when Saddam is convicted? Highly unlikely as Saddam will go to some country club prison as opposed to the hellholes he used to send his people to. At the very least, the fact that he is getting a trial when he used to summarily execute people who didn’t support him has to rub them the wrong way. It cannot be easy to watch this mockery daily while they remember loved ones and friends who simply disappeared. It certainly can’t be easy to watch Saddam simply take control of the court time after time. It can’t be easy for those who suffered in Abu Ghraib and places like it to know that Saddam is in a clean, dry, safe jail cell with 3 square meals a day and a garden to go to.
This trial is a mockery of justice but not because it is American funded and not because it is being run in a manner that a kindergarten student could emulate and improve upon. It is a mockery of justice because those who suffered under Saddam and still suffer with the memories are not getting the justice they so richly deserve. They instead are being hidden behind curtains, unable to face their tormentor and get some of their own back. They are being treated like the defendants instead of the witnesses. What a mockery.
Print
Email
