New UK terror bill equated with internment in Northern Ireland
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
London, Apr 17, IRNA
UK-Terror Laws
Former speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly Lord Allerdice has added his voice to the widespread opposition to government plans to extend the pre-charge detention of terror suspects from 28 days to six weeks.
More police powers would lead to a breakdown in trust and alienate ethnic minority communities, warned Allerdice who played a significant part in Northern Ireland's peace process.
The measure would be seen as "unjust and unfair" just as internment without trial did the years of conflict in Northern Ireland, he was quoted saying by the BBC Thursday.
The government latest Counter Terrorism Bill is currently being scrutinized by MPs in its committee stage before returning for its third reading in parliament next month, where MPs will scrutinize the legislation in detail. said.
Opposition parties together with Labour rebels have objected to the attempt to further extend pre-trial detentions after former prime minister Tony Blair suffered his only defeat in the House of Commons three years ago when trying to increase it to 90 days.
In recent months, the government has brought back the controversial plan first decreasing the extension to 54 days and then to 42 days but has failed to win a cross-party consensus.
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith is now arguing that the government only wants to bring in the extension as a "reserve power" not a permanent increase.
But Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman Chris Huhne has warned that Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government is heading for a "train crash" over the legislation.
Internment without trial was last brought in to Northern Ireland as an emergency measure in 1971. By the time it was lifted as being discredited as counter-productive in 1975, nearly 2,000 people, overwhelmingly Catholics, had been detained.
2220**345**1412
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
