Some mistake, surely

Monday, 12th November 2007

According to the Guardian, the campaigning group Liberty is producing a report tomorrow claiming that Britain's existing 28-day limit on holding terror suspects without charge is already far longer than that for any comparable democracy.

Liberty’s director, Shami Chakrabarti, said the study ‘explodes self-serving assertions about extended detention in inquisitorial Europe and other western democracies. It makes embarrassing reading for all of us in the land that gave Magna Carta to the world.’

Yet we read elsewhere that the suspects in the Meredith Kercher murder case in the Italian town of Perugia might be held for up to a year without being charged; and that isn’t even on suspicion of terrorism.

Embarrassing reading, indeed.

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David Brooks

November 14th, 2007 8:35pm

How funny that in this particular case (but no other) Ms Philips should put such unquestioning faith in the views of the Metropolitan Police. Does it not occur to her that the police will always ask for more powers - never less - and will always claim these powers are 'essential'? Perhaps she should have asked herself why it is that no suspect has yet been held for the maximum 28 days that the police previously claimed to be 'essential' and why no one has so far escaped charges because of this limit. Before agreeing to a measure that in the words of the Daily Telegraph 'strikes at the heart of cherished freedoms' we need a proper answer to this kind of question. Relying on the usual Philips formula of scaremongering and snide comments about the so-called ‘chattering classes' is just not good enough when such important issues are under discussion.

Paul

November 19th, 2007 12:36am

David, I have read and re-read Melanie's article and it makes no reference to the Metropolitan Police, or her faith (unquestioning or not) in them. She simply points out that Liberty's statement that the 28 day period is already far longer than any other comparable democracy is demonstrably false.

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Melanie Phillips is a Daily Mail columnist. She also writes for the Jewish Chronicle and is a panellist on BBC Radio Four's Moral Maze. Her most recent book is 'The World Turned Upside Down: The Global Battle over God, Truth and Power', published by Encounter.

For a complete set of Melanie's articles click here