UK: MCB upset at law change following Livni arrest warrant

UK: MCB upset at law change following Livni arrest warrant


The Muslim Council of Britain has attacked Foreign Secretary David Miliband for saying he would change the law of universal jurisdiction in the wake of the Tzipi Livni arrest warrant row.


In a long letter to Mr Miliband, MCB general secretary Mohammad Abdul Bari said: “We regret to have to say that the process that the government appears to have chosen to follow on this issue is fundamentally flawed.”


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But Mr Abdul Bari said: "It appears, that following the expression of strong disapproval and anger by the Israeli government, and representations by the Jewish Leadership Council, you have shown a willingness to review and remove the powers of magistrates in the UK to issue warrants of arrest against alleged Israeli war criminals”.


He accused Mr Miliband of “allowing political exigency to undermine and erode fundamental legal traditions and conventions which are centuries old”. He asked why the foreign secretary chose only to rely on Lord Pannick’s opinion and not sought different views.


The proposed change, he said, “sends out a clear signal that the government wants the courts to be subservient to political considerations”.


The letter ended by urging Mr Miliband of the “grave consequences of interfering with established legal procedures” and the damage it would do to Britain’s reputation both at home and abroad.


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Source: The JC