Drone Killings
Posted in Events dear boy. Events, Politics at 20:27 on 8 September 2015
The Prime Minister, David Cameron – known to this blog as Mr Irresponsible – has stated that the recent killing by RAF drone strike of two UK citizens in Syria is lawful as it was an act of self-defence and there was no alternative.
So. Let me get this clear. It is illegal for agents of the UK government to execute people convicted in the UK courts for murder, treason (or even arson in Her Majesty’s Dockyards) since the death penalty for such crimes has been abolished; but it is legal to do so to someone outside the UK’s legal jurisdiction, someone who has not been so convicted, or even put on trial?
How is that exactly?
(And what is to stop the government declaring anyone so guilty and despatching a drone to get rid of them?)
I thought we (the so-called civilised law-abiding nations) were supposed to be better than them (the likes of ISIS, ISIL or, the description I believe they themselves abhor, Daesh.)
We have been here before, of course. The major difference is that Gibraltar is British sovereign territory and Syria is not.
Mind you. Abolition of the death penalty in the UK has been a dead duck since the Iranian Embassy siege.
Tags: arson in royal dockyards, Daesh, David Cameron, drones, Gibraltar, Iranian Embassy siege, ISIL, ISIS, Mr Irresponsible, Politics, RAF, Syria
Martin McCallion
9 September 2015 at 23:36
I don’t think your last sentence quite follows. The abolition of the death penalty stands. The death penalty means the state killing as part of the legal framework. The killings on Gibraltar and these recent ones by drone strike were extra-judicial killings (at best; the more accurate term is murder).
Coincidentally — or, probably, not — I just saw a tweet from an account called “Pratchett Quotes” which went:
“But we should kill him!”
“No.”
“You know what he is! Why not kill–”
“Because it doesn’t matter what he is. It matters what we are.”
Which sums it up quite well, I think.
jackdeighton
9 September 2015 at 23:54
Martin,
I take your point but if it’s not part of the legal framework then surely it’s illegal? Or murder, as you say.