This Parliamentary Written Question , by Andrew MacKinlay MP, one of the senior Members of Parliament who attended the demonstration in support of Gary McKinnon at the Home Office, is interesting:
Extradition: USA
Home DepartmentWritten answers and statements, 7 January 2010
Andrew MacKinlay (Thurrock, Labour)To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his duty to assess the appropriateness of extraditing persons to the US in relation to health grounds applies (a) at the time of the receipt of the US application, (b) at the time of proceedings in the UK and (c) at the time immediately before the extradition takes place; and if he will make a statement.
Meg Hillier (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Home Office; Hackney South & Shoreditch, Labour)holding answer 6 January 2010
In the scheme of the Extradition Act 2003, it falls to the courts to determine whether health factors raise a barrier to a person's extradition. However, the Home Secretary has an implied power to withdraw an extradition order where, exceptionally, a new matter arises subsequent to the completion of all proceedings under the Act but before extradition takes place. The basis for this implied power is section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998, which renders it unlawful for the Home Secretary, as a public authority, to act in a way which is incompatible with a Convention right.
Presumably this Parliamentary Written Answer is the latest considered view of the Home Office's legal advisors.
This rather contradicts Home Secretary Alan Johnson's earlier testimony in front of the Home Affairs Select Committee, where he did his Pontius Pilate like shrugging of shoulders, claiming that he had no power to intervene and stop the extradition of Gary McKinnon to the USA.
Sian
Hi I think that you should refer a link on the national autistic socity website about information for criminal justice proffesionals link there are some very usefull information for people with an ASD who are in trouble with the law.
http://www.nas.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=471
Robert Dallen Sands
The U.S. is just another foreign country whose influence they expect to be accepted outside their borders, but as with any other country, they can be closed off. Don't set up a sacrificial lamb in the form of Gary McKinnon. He did the yanks a favour by showing them flaws in their system, he should be paid as a consultant by them. Besides whatever happens to the yanks is their own fault and they deserve whatever they get and everything that happens to them. Payback is sweet, and they truly do deserve it.
Comrade Citizen Honeybearovitch
Comrade Citizen Robert, I'm a yank, but I don't deserve retaliation for my government's kidnapping and torture of Arab or Muslim taxi drivers who were falsely accused in order to receive a bounty. We behave better than the bad guys, we live by the rule of law. That's Gary's only hope too, as you can see below.
Because Gary is protected by British law and conventions of the European Union against inhumane treatment, his lawyers should file
another appeal pointing out that if Gary is tried in the U.S., he's in danger of being sentenced to 60 years in prison. Yet, in the
Soviet Union during Stalin's reign of terror, no one could be sentenced to more than 25 years. Stalin, as Gary's supporters should know, at one time had 21,000,000 people in prisons of various descriptions, had starved to death 20,000,000 Ukranians, and had killed everyone in the U.S.S.R. who he wanted dead. But, no one could be sentenced to more than 25 years in prison. Not only that, but sentences were concurrent. German citizens who were guards at the death camps, members of the S.S. and S.D., or officers in the German military, who weren't executed, were sentenced to no more than 25 years, as well; even though German Nazis had murdered millions of Russians. Some of those German Nzis were sentenced to less than 25 years. (SEVEN THOUSAND DAYS IN SIBERIA, Karlo Stajner, 1958, 1971, and 1988, Farrar, Straus and
Giroux, Inc.: New York, New York, U.S.A.)
Even if Great Britain and the E.U. have not determined a specific number of years in prison, beyond which, would be a violaton of Gary's human rights, the fact that a monster like Stalin could not imprison anyone for more than 25 years, should prevent Gary's extradition. Pointing out the difference between 25 years and 60 years would not be America-bashing. It'd be common sense and decency.
After reading the book, I know that President Bush (under who's administration Gary was targeted) is either a Stalinist or took the
worst of Nazi Germany and Stalin's Russia and made the U.S. what it is today. Inspite of the wild allegations about the Bush family being neo-Nazis; especially Prescott who traded with Nazi Germany even after the U.S. declard war and had to be shut down by the F.B.I., Gary will be coming to a Stalinist America. The U.S.S.R.
had military tribunals with the same rules and procedures that America's military tribunals of today have. Stalin's Russia and the U.S. post-9/11 share so many features as shown in the book,
that at first, I thought the book had been edited into a work of propaganda for a post-9/11 American audience. All of Gary's supporters, especially Europeans must read this book and if Gary is convicted at an American trial, the 25 versus 60 year difference should be the matter of appeal all the way to the Supreme Court. 60 years will be a violation of Gary's Constitutional protection against cruel and unusual punishment.
Secret Agent Honeybear (A Double 00)
Gary's matter involves an attack on the legislative and judicial branches of the British government. The U.S. government stated that British courts would not deal harshly enough with him (a matter involving the judiciary). The extradition treaty which was written specifically for him is one-sided (a matter involving the legislature). Security of computers at U.S. government bases that Gary penetrated, involves private corporations
(Non-Governmental Organizations: N.G.Os.; the "Hidden Hand"). It's obvious that security was deliberately compromised by private
security firms in order to allow just enough "damage" to bring charges against him. Whenever he was in the Pentagon computers he
noticed hundreds of other penetrators. But he (a British subject) is the one who has been singled out for special treatment. The
implication is that Britain's Intelligence and police agencies, to wit: MI5, MI6, a Special Branch, and Scotland Yard are incompetent
to deal with situations like this and the matter should be turned over to the Americans. This weakens the "Special Relationship" between the U.K. and U.S.; exactly what the "Hidden Hand wants."
During the course of Gary's ordeal, information has been leaked to the press that British military (a matter involving the executive)
leaders in Afghanistan and Iraq had complained up the chain of command which is headed by the U.S. that their requests for support during fights with the Resistance, Taliban, and Al Qaeda were sometimes unsatisfactorily met. This implies that the British are whiners and not up to snuff. This weakens the "Special Relationship." The same "Hidden Hand" plays a big role there.
The U.S. completely dominates the Carribean and petroleum is at the top of American strategic interests. But a British company, British Petroleum (B.P.) there at this very moment has been splashed all over the world press as experiencing some difficulties with an oil operation that is threatening America. Private American security corporations are deeply involved there and employ many ex-Navy S.E.A.Ls. who are trained in sabotaging oil operations. B.P. was set up just as Gary was set up. They were both given the go-ahead to bend the rules. All in order to weaken and eventually sever the "Special Relationship" by fooling Americans into thinking that Britain doesn't work and should be put back on the shelf. Little does the world know that it's a case of "Dirty Deeds They're Done Dirt Cheap."
Corporations control the U.S. government. Although they can have their public servants out-source many of the functions that government traditionally performs, they're still in competition with government organizations such as the C.I.A., Department of Defense, Bureau of Prisons, F.B.I., etc. They can't directly
replace a large bureaucracy such as the C.I.A., at this time. So, they whittle away around the edges. It's a lot easier for a private American security firm to replace MI6, the M.O.D., and
other parts of the "Special Relationship" that have "proven" insufficient for America's needs. Even the U.S. military and Intelligence services can't get the job done by themselves, supposedly.
Gary has been a pawn from the beginning. I've been exposing his exploitation from the beginning. Within the next 10 years the
C.I.A. will be replaced by a private security firm, maybe the same one that gave Gary a "green light" to go into the Pentagon's computers. Twenty years from now the whole U.S. government will be replaced by N.G.Os. and it couldn't have been done without Gary.
Honeybear
Ooops! It's the Gulf of Mexico, not the Carribean Sea. But, on the other hand, John Cleese was in a recent James Bond movie and I always thought Monty Python's Flying Circus was a documentary. Is this why I can't find a job?
Space Cadet Honeybear
An article about Gary just today.
http://www.henrymakow.com/von_braun_beware_fake_alien_th.html