EU president Finland says Saddam should not hang

[cal04]

The European Union urged Iraq on Sunday not to carry out the death sentence passed on Iraq's former leader Saddam Hussein after his conviction for crimes against humanity.

"The EU opposes capital punishment in all cases and under all circumstances, and it should not be carried out in this case either," Finland, current holder of the rotating EU presidency, said in a statement.

The statement offered no direct comment on the outcome of the trial but did say, however, that the EU had repeatedly condemned "the systematic, widespread and extremely grave violations of human rights and of international humanitarian law committed by the regime of Saddam Hussein".

(snip)
Around the region, the outcome satisfied countries that Saddam invaded, but caused resentment amongst some Arabs who see him as the victim of a U.S.-inspired show trial.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L05213396.htm

[originalpckelly]

1. You know what...

Tell that Fin to go fuck himself.

I don't think there is a lot of doubt Saddam was a bad guy. He isn't being rail-roaded. This isn't some guy who might really be innocent. The guy is a total fucking asshole.

With all that he did to those poor people in Iraq, I can safely say he is getting it better than he deserves.

The only reason I oppose death in any case is the uncertainty in someone's guilt, but this is so different.

I think it shows that these people don't really think about their decisions, they just oppose what ever happens.

Now I might say that his trial is not consistent with the Geneva conventions, but that isn't the same as opposing the death penalty in this case, when decided by a competent tribunal.

However, I know they guy is guilty, I say full steam ahead and kill the bastard.

[mike_c]

2. if this is what Saddam deserves then a whole bunch of Americans...

...deserve the same thing, for exactly the same crime against humanity: killing innocent Iraqis. I hope you'll advocate as strongly for hanging American politicians and military commanders.

[Spider Jerusalem]

5. No-one's said Saddam wasn't a bad guy.

Nor is anyone saying he isn't guilty. You apparently didn't bother to read what you're responding to, or you didn't understand it at all. The Finnish EU president is arguing from the principle of total opposition to capital punishment (which has been abolished in most civilised countries; none of the EU states has it, and Japan is the only other first-world country that still executes people).

And one could argue that death is better than Saddam deserves, if one holds him to be an evil villain; surely the rest of his life in a prison cell with no possibility of release would be worse punishment than death?

[wuushew]

3. I agree with Finland

n/t

[originalpckelly]

4. This should not have been posted...

I can tell you right now some freeper will see even the few comments supporting the Fin position and run wild with it.

[jaxx]

7. I'm not understanding why it shouldn't have been posted.

Is it wrong to disagree with the sentence?

[originalpckelly]

9. Read this report from the UN Human Rights watch:

http://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/iraqanfal

[devilgrrl]

10. Well, if the west hadn't put Saddam in power in the first place...

none of this would have happened.

Ever thought of that?

[originalpckelly]

14. Now that is totally reasonable!

However, denying hoards of evidence that Saddam committed war crimes is something totally disgusting.

[devilgrrl]

18. Saddam's crimes happened under the watchful eye of Reagan/Bush...

using weapons supplied by the USA.

Who's denying anything?

[jaxx]

22. Yes? Those are known facts.

I would think anyone could have the right to disagree with the death penalty.

[devilgrrl]

8. "freeper will see even the few comments...."

as if that means anything. :eyes:

[originalpckelly]

11. There are times when the nuts on our side are just as bad as their nuts...

questioning the sentence of a war criminal is one of those times.

MY GOODNESS! That's like saying Jeffry Dahmer didn't kill anyone, his neighbor really did it.

[devilgrrl]

13. No one is defending Saddam - quit making shit up.

eom

[originalpckelly]

16. No one is defending Saddam? Look:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x2581494#2581599

[devilgrrl]

21. BFD.

You get this wound up when freepers call for the death of Nancy Pelosi? How about some of the shit that's spewed from Ann Coulter's mouth?

[acmavm]

17. You powers of logic just amaze me. Did anyone say he was

innocent? They are saying there's more to this than just Saddam. Our own government was an accomplice to any and all of his crimes.

[MadHound]

19. Stop blowing smoke, OK

Nobody here is denying that Saddam was a bad guy, or that he did evil things.

What people are disagreeing with, including myself, is giving him the death penalty. Many, many people are morally opposed to putting the power of death into the hands of the state.

[MrPrax]

23. Yeah...

We wouldn't want some freeper immediately posting that some 'fin' should go fuck himself and how they KNOW Saddam is guilty because he is a 'bad guy' and then more or less imply that anyone who disagrees is helping out the Freepers by making democrats look bad :eyes:

...the Saddam conviction I guess is the last triumph for those that still want to believe in the sincerity of the Bush war crime and the concept of a just war....it's a lonely place to be arguing this late in the game that 'well Bush is bad, but that Saddam was way worst'...if your're not an Iraqi of course

[acmavm]

12. When did it become imcumbent on you to chose what should

and should not be posted. Just curious. Need to know if we have to pass everything through you for approval.

Besides that, what I see as a plus is that this sets a lovely precedent for the 21st millenium. We get dictatorial murderous thugs into a court room and if they are found guilty, the get the death sentence.

Hopefully that will make more than a few world leaders a little nervous.

Was that okay to post????

[Spider Jerusalem]

15. Who cares?

What they think is not something that should be a cause of worry or concern to anyone, since they manage to be consistently wrong about almost everything anyway. And why should YOU care? You've already said "hang the bastard", so it's obvious you don't support the Finnish position. If the thought of being tarred by association with people who are consistent enough in their principles to oppose the death penalty in all cases really bothers you THAT much, well, that's your problem, not anyone else's.

[MasonJar]

6. Finland is speaki8ng for the entire EU on principle. I am against

the death sentence. Sadaam should have been tried at the Hague, not by a Shite run government, backed by Bush.

[rodeodance]

20. I agree. SH will be a hero if killed (plus i oppose the death sentence)