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John Ashcroft:
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Hi everyone! |
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John Ashcroft:
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Start talking - what's up? |
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Eva:
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Hi John: May I call you John? |
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John Ashcroft:
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Someone mumbled that our expert isn't here yet |
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Ryan:
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I am pleased to have the opportunity to ask you some questions. |
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Eric:
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Hello expert. Which of the legal approaches listed
will have the most positive impact in reducing global terrorism |
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John Ashcroft:
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Surprise our expert is one of you! Mark Miller, a UD expert
on terrorism. |
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Mark Miller:
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HHello I'm here.The expert or so-called expert. |
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Mark Miller:
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I think this is the fundamental question and also the most
difficult. There is no consensus amongst students of terrorism as
to the response. I think |
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John Ashcroft:
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Look, our expert, Mark Miller has arrived. Welcome,
Mark! |
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John Ashcroft:
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Who will pose the first question? |
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John Ashcroft:
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Cat got your tongue... |
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Robert:
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Mr. (Ms?) Ashcroft? What would be the majority world
opinion of the US if all terrorists were suject to military tribunals? |
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Eric:
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If there isn't a consensus, are there any legal approaches
which are receiving more interest (or discouragement) than the others? |
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Sandra:
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Mr. expert, what would be the opinions of the US's partners
in fighting terrorism? |
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Mark Miller:
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I think the perception of fairness is all important. But it
needs to be balanced against efficiency and other concerns as well.
The int'l tribunals at the Hague and in Africa have not worked very
well despite recent progress at the Hague. The Am. court systerm
proved to be efficient and fair I think in the Wtc bombing case
of '93. |
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Eva:
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think that we ought to consider the root cause of terrorism...
Lets set these guys free, give them a "golden" handshake
...and send them off to preach American values and virtues. |
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Eric:
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Besides the listed cases, what are the precedents? Has there
been anything legally similar and what did they do? |
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Mark Miller:
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Robert, it is difficult to say right now. In part it depends
on the procedures and rules adopted. I understand that the US plans
to incorporate many standard procedures and protections but it isn't
at all clear right now |
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Ryan:
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Mr. Aschroft, how about using The Hague so that the world would
know that the US is fairly dealing with the terrorists? |
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Eric:
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What changes could be made at The Hague to improve the handling
of terrorism cases? |
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John Ashcroft:
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As AG, I am concerned about security information that we may
have to present to show the terrorists' culpability. I worry about
any tribunal that would force us to reveal these secretsit could
be very dangerous information to let out. |
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John Ashcroft:
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Professor Miller, what solutions do you see for the security
problems? |
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Ryan:
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But there is a price to be paid. I think we need to show the
world that we are fair and our legal system is the best in the world. |
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Mark Miller:
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Eric, what precedents to avoid. I think we want to
stay clear of an Israeli-like response after the Munich Olympics.
Israel bombed refugee camps in leb. and Syria and killed hundreds
of civilians. They also began a campaign of assassination that targeted
in the end some who were totally innocent like the Moroccan killed
by Mossad in Norway. |
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Ryan:
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The security issue is a smoke screen. I don't believe that
the US should be concerned about security issues at this stage. |
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Eric:
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Mark - I tend to agree on the Israeli response. We
run the risk of touching off a similar long term conflict with our
current actions. |
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Ryan:
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I agree with Professor Miller. We need to be careful not to
harm innocent civilians in an effort to harm few terrorists. |
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Robert:
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Mr. Ashcroft and Professor Miller. Would our treatment
of captured terrorists be different if Osma Bid Laden was found
to be dead? |
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Eric:
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Does harm include damage to our own civil liberties? |
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Mark Miller:
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Eva, thinking about root causes is extremely iimportant. The
trials are only a dimension of the appropriate response to 9/11.
I think we need to think of counter-terrorism very broadly and start
thinking about statehood for Palestinians, lessening global inequities
and such matters. |
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Ryan:
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I think we have exhausted our questions. Can we go to the next
exercise? |
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Judy:
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Do national emergencies trump individual rights? |
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Mark Miller:
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Robert, it shouldn't be. It shouldn't matter if he
is dead or alive in how we try the other suspects. |
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Janet :
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I think all of "due process" group's questions have
been asked. |
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John Ashcroft:
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I know your schedule is tight, Mark, so I just want
to thank you for joining us today.? |
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Mark Miller:
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Thank you all for putting up with my slow typing. Mark |
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John Ashcroft:
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We hope you'll be available at another time.I'll be
in touch. Thanks again. |
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Eva:
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Mark: I kind of gave up on this discussion... As I
am not a legal expert, I do not feel comfortable enough to participate
in this chat room discussion. Thanks for your reaction and I agree
with you. In particular on the Palestinian issue; I think, in some
way, it was related to Sept. 11 and if we (conveniently) sweep this
under the rug and put all our efforts into the legal niceties, we'll
lose an opportunity to help solve thes conflict areas. |
