An Island ?

In all seriousness,

I must admit, I feel a great disquietude about Saddam Hussein’s trial in Baghdad.

When Napoleon escaped from exile to Elba, he returned to Paris and remobilized his troops. He then marched against the allied European forces led by Britain’s General Wellington and was soundly defeated at Waterloo. Surrendering to the Captain of a British warship, the HMS Bellerophon, he was taken to Saint Helena, a remote island in the South Atlantic, where he remained in enforced exile until he died on May 5, 1821. Nineteen years later, his remains were returned to Paris, where he is presently entombed.

When Saddam Hussein was brought out of hiding from a subterranean cesspool, he announced to his captors, "I am the President of Iraq." He was quickly taken to a secret location where he remains sequestered. And now he is undergoing trial by a panel of Iraqi judges, whose authority is "derived" from the Iraqi "government."

Having captured him alive, what to do with him became an immediate and pressing concern. Turning him over to The Hague was not viewed as an acceptable option, since that tribunal has foregone execution. Having the Iraqis try him seemed more appropriate, especially because it would provide all of Islam with a universally witnessed democratic proceeding.

But now that the trial has started, it is beginning to look like a not very good idea. Bearded and not immaculately attired, an angry Saddam is using his defendant’s gated section as a circus platform. Hostile and insolent, he incessantly attacks the judges. His retinue of co-defendants support and applaud him. In the meantime, judges, lawyers and witnesses are threatened and some have already been killed. Some witnesses are concealed from view. Their recorded voices are distorted to prevent recognition. Defense lawyers don't always have access to them. Adding to the surrealism of the setting, Ramsey Clark (who served as President Johnson’s Attorney General) has joined Saddam’s defense team and he keeps actively challenging the court's authority. In truth, not every Iraqi reviles Saddam. Indeed, increasing numbers of them seem to be moving toward his side. It pleases them and perhaps most of Middle East Islam to see Saddam embarrass the court and humiliate the Americans.

When and if a conviction is eventually obtained, the melodrama will surely gain passion and momentum. Whether or not to execute him, if that is the Court's verdict, will be debated and argued everywhere. Appeal will follow upon appeal. Discord will play upon discord. The focus will become blurred and the authorities who decided to place him on trial will probably begin to regret their decision to do so.

Perhaps a page or two should be taken from the saga of Napoleon. Why not place Saddam aboard the USS Cole and transport him to a remote island on one of our seven seas? There, under the watchful eyes of an internationally appointed committee, he could spend the remainder of his life in enforced exile. Then, how and where to entomb him will be subject to the imagination and perspicacity of those who must eventually make that decision. How he will be remembered by Iraqis and the rest of the world will depend on the conscience and perspectives of history.

What do you think?

Comments by: Dr Correoso and Attorney Kenney