ID :
35959
Tue, 12/16/2008 - 17:42
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/35959
The shortlink copeid
American daily criticises Bush on shoe-throwing incident
New York, Dec 16 (PTI) Noting that hitting someone
with shoe is a particularly strong rebuke in Iraq, a leading
American daily has lamented that President George Bush refuses
to read it that way.
Interpreting the incident in the context of the Iraq
war, the New York Times said more than any other issue, the
"the war of choice" will define Bush's legacy. Yet he remains
"stubbornly convinced" that the 2003 invasion was absolutely
right thing to do.
"No one laments the fact that Saddam Hussein is gone.
But there are serious questions about whether war was the
right approach and whether Iraq is better off given how Mr
Bush and his administration mishandled the aftermath of the
invasion," the paper said in an opinion piece written by its
"Editorial Board."
The throwing of shoes by Muntader al-Zaidi, an Iraqi
TV journalist, at President Bush during a joint press
conference on Sunday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki
in Baghdad's super-secure Green Zone, transformed him into a
"symbolic figure in the debate about the American military's
presence in Iraq," the paper noted.
The Times called for "speedy trial, a fair process and
access to a competent lawyer for Zaidi, saying Bush should not
see the incident as a source of "endless shoe" jokes but must
make it clear to Baghdad that the United States does not
condone abuse of defendants.
The paper's comments came in the context witnesses
telling it that Zaidi was severely beaten after the press
conference and dragged out.
The Times noted that the Human Rights Watch portrays a
judicial system in Iraq under which defendants are often
abused in custody and held for months or even years before
being referred to a judge.
When cases are heard, the defendants are often left
without adequate defense counsel to answer charges, which are
frequently based on secret informants, coerced confessions and
flimsy evidence.
Juvenile detainees are often held with adults, the
report found, despite an Iraqi law ordering them to be held
separately, it added. PTI DS
RKM
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with shoe is a particularly strong rebuke in Iraq, a leading
American daily has lamented that President George Bush refuses
to read it that way.
Interpreting the incident in the context of the Iraq
war, the New York Times said more than any other issue, the
"the war of choice" will define Bush's legacy. Yet he remains
"stubbornly convinced" that the 2003 invasion was absolutely
right thing to do.
"No one laments the fact that Saddam Hussein is gone.
But there are serious questions about whether war was the
right approach and whether Iraq is better off given how Mr
Bush and his administration mishandled the aftermath of the
invasion," the paper said in an opinion piece written by its
"Editorial Board."
The throwing of shoes by Muntader al-Zaidi, an Iraqi
TV journalist, at President Bush during a joint press
conference on Sunday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki
in Baghdad's super-secure Green Zone, transformed him into a
"symbolic figure in the debate about the American military's
presence in Iraq," the paper noted.
The Times called for "speedy trial, a fair process and
access to a competent lawyer for Zaidi, saying Bush should not
see the incident as a source of "endless shoe" jokes but must
make it clear to Baghdad that the United States does not
condone abuse of defendants.
The paper's comments came in the context witnesses
telling it that Zaidi was severely beaten after the press
conference and dragged out.
The Times noted that the Human Rights Watch portrays a
judicial system in Iraq under which defendants are often
abused in custody and held for months or even years before
being referred to a judge.
When cases are heard, the defendants are often left
without adequate defense counsel to answer charges, which are
frequently based on secret informants, coerced confessions and
flimsy evidence.
Juvenile detainees are often held with adults, the
report found, despite an Iraqi law ordering them to be held
separately, it added. PTI DS
RKM
NNNN
