It’s neither helpful nor honest for the government and
individuals to maintain the disclaimer that we respect Indonesia’s laws and sovereignty
when discussing capital punishment.
Let’s stop being mealy mouthed. We are not diplomats weighing fall-out or politicians
calculating where the fleeting public interest lies. The death penalty is abhorrent, immoral, unequivocally
unacceptable and we should say so whatever the consequences.
Did we respect South Africa’s sovereignty when it practised racial
segregation? Do we respect Saudi laws on lashing dissidents and beheading
maids? Do we respect Egypt’s jailing of
journalists? And if ISIS sets up a state
will we acknowledge its sovereignty?
Did William Wilberforce ‘respect’ the slave trade nations
while preaching abolition?
This is not an argument about drugs or crime, but universal
human rights that transcend borders, politics and the trade issues of the
moment.
Can we please get back to that great Australian quality of
addressing a spade by its proper name.
Capital punishment is judicial murder, and we should lead the way in
condemning its use everywhere and support those progressive Indonesians working
towards abolition.
No comments:
Post a Comment