From: Ad 

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=19277

"ritain's top prosecutor set himself at odds with Prime Minister Tony
Blair's government Wednesday, saying the "war on terror" does not
exist and urging restraint on laws threatening human rights.

The director of public prosecutions, Ken Macdonald, warned of a
"fear-driven and inappropriate response" to the new threat that
could lead to the abandonment of respect for fair trials and due legal
process.

In a speech to the Criminal Bar Association, reported by the Guardian
newspaper, Macdonald rejected the assertion that a "war on
terror" was being played out in Britain.

"On the streets of London, there is no such thing as a 'war on
terror', just as there can be no such thing as a 'war on drugs', said
Macdonald, who heads the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

"The fight against terrorism on the streets of Britain is not a war.
It is the prevention of crime, the enforcement of our laws and the winning
of justice for those damaged by the infringement."

One of the primary aims of groups and individuals who committed atrocities
such as the July 2005 suicide bombings in London was to encourage a
response that ran counter to British values, he added."


"Macdonald said a "culture of legislative restraint in the area
of terrorist crime is central to the existence of an efficient and human
rights compatible process".

Without such restraint, there would be a greater number of less safe
convictions, he added.

The criminal justice system's response to terrorism must be
"proportionate and grounded in due process and the rule of law",
he told his audience.

"We must protect ourselves from these atrocious crimes without
abandoning our traditions of freedom.""


Indeed.

Adam

--- BBBS/NT v4.01 Flag-5