In a bitter political duel over new anti-terror legislation, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Wednesday that he would make no further concessions to opposition demands for milder laws to control terrorist suspects.
The dispute provoked a heated showdown in Parliament between Blair and Michael Howard, leader of the opposition Conservatives, with each man accusing the other of seeking political gain by appearing tough on terrorism in advance of elections expected in May.
The debate has a more immediate impact, however, as parts of the current anti-terror laws expire next Monday. Home Secretary Charles Clarke warned that without new laws, 11 foreigners being held without trial or charge at Belmarsh Prison in London would be freed. The men reportedly include Abu Qatada, a Syrian Muslim cleric accused of acting as a spiritual mentor to Mohamed Atta, one of the Sept. 11 hijackers.
The men were detained under anti-terror laws written after the Sept. 11 attacks. But, last December, Britain's highest court ruled that the indefinite detention of the men violated European human rights conventions.
At the core of the argument is the degree to which Britain's effort to thwart terrorists justifies the suspension of centuries-old liberties.
Blair has been seeking Parliament's approval for a law that would permit the home secretary to issue so-called control orders to restrict the movement of terror suspects through measures including house arrest.
Following debates in the House of Lords this week, the Blair government has offered concessions, notably provisions for judges to be consulted on the use of control orders and for the legislation to be reviewed each year.
But the House of Lords went further, voting in favor of opposition demands for a deadline to replace the law by November and for stricter criteria for control orders to be issued only in cases where there was a "balance of probability" that a suspect was a terrorist.
The government wants a lower standard, "grounds for suspicion."
The votes were particularly embarrassing for Blair as 24 peers from his Labor Party vote against the party's wishes. They included the former lord chancellor, Lord Irvine, widely known as the prime minister's erstwhile mentor.
"We have made concessions we think are reasonable," Blair said Wednesday. "I hope that satisfies people."
Senior police officers have said in recent days that hundreds of potential terrorists are in Britain, and some antiterrorism expects have expressed fear of an attack ahead of the coming British election, as happened in Madrid last March 11, three days before Spain's election.
"Should any terrorist act occur, there will not be a debate about civil liberties," Blair said Wednesday. Saying the police and security services have urged him not to dilute the proposal, he said: "There would be debate about the advice the government received and whether they followed it. I've got the advice, I intend to follow it," he said.
SPEAKING OUT: After Siranudh Scott’s allegations surfaced, celebrities and public figures took to social media to share their own experiences of sexual misconduct and abuse A high-profile alleged sexual abuse case within a wealthy Thai beer brewing family has prompted a wave of painful accounts from survivors of unconnected abuse in the conservative nation. Siranudh Scott, a member of the billionaire Thai family that founded the ubiquitous Singha beer brand, posted an emotional video this month accusing his elder brother Sunit of repeatedly abusing him when he was a teenager. Sunit, who is in his 30s, later denied the allegations in a video posted online, but Singha parent Boonrawd dismissed him from his executive role with the company on Tuesday last week. “I felt I needed to speak
SEEKING ORDER: Rodrigo Paz said that ‘anyone who wants to destroy the nation will have to deal with this president and the full force of the constitution’ Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz on Wednesday said that the nation was at a “breaking point” after nearly a month of protests that have caused shortages of food, fuel and medicine. Paz, who took office six months ago amid the worst economic crisis there in four decades, is battling a groundswell of fury over his policies. The political capital, La Paz, has been besieged by low-income workers and members of the indigenous majority calling for his resignation. “The country needs order and is reaching breaking point,” the 58-year-old said at a public event in La Paz, renewing his appeal for dialogue. On Tuesday, the Bolivian
COMMUNITY CONFLICT: Concerns about disease spread from corpses has run up against friends and families’ desire to bury their dead as infection spreads in the area Angry residents of a town at the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) attacked and burned a tent that was part of a health center where people are being treated for the virus, the staff there said Saturday. It was the second such attack in the region in a week. No one was hurt in the attack, according to reports but as patients ran out to escape the fire, 18 people with suspected Ebola infections fled the facility and are unaccounted for, a hospital director said. Angry residents arrived at the clinic in the
Forecasters in Europe yesterday warned of exceptional heat as record temperatures driven by a “heat dome” push temperatures well above seasonal norms across the continent. The surge follows a record-breaking Monday, with France logging its hottest day in the month of May on record, its weather agency said, and the UK also posting unprecedented highs. A so-called “heat dome” of warm air from northern Africa trapped under a high-pressure system over western Europe is behind the high temperatures not usually seen until high summer. Restrictions on outdoor work were imposed in parts of Italy, beaches in southwest France filled earlier than usual and
RSS