Two supreme courts, two directions on terror
Two Supreme Courts, in two different countries, went their separate ways on the matter of terror. And the directions each pursued were in stark contrast to what people would have expected, given the nature of these nations.
First
In all of Southeast Asia, it is in Indonesia where you can find the most radical of all Muslim groups, whether they be suicide bombers or young student activists just starting on the path to confrontational politics.
The Indonesian Supreme Court gave the green light for the execution of three of the so-called
The three -- Amrozi, Imam Samudra and Ali Ghufron -- whose unrepentant smiles made them among the most hated criminal suspects in this part of the world, had their last pleas for an overturn of their conviction rejected.
On the other side of the globe, in
In the early morning hours of March 11 in 2004, a series of explosions rocked a
But the Spanish Supreme Court last week overturned a lower court decision that sent the terrorists to prison by freeing four of them. Of the four, three -- Basel Ghalyoun, Mohamed Almallah Dabas and Abdelilah El Fadual el Akil -- are Muslim.
On the other hand, a Spaniard named Antonio Toro, who had previously been acquitted of the charge of transporting explosives in connection with the Madrid bombing, had his acquittal reversed and was slapped a four-year prison term.
What is happening here, a lot of people will most likely exclaim. And indeed, what is happening here? Maybe, going out on a limb, it can be said that the supreme courts in these two countries are simply just being their independent selves and should not be judged by biases.
The Indonesian Supreme Court, sitting in the heartland of radical Islamic fundamentalism in
The Spanish Supreme Court, sitting in the heartland of Christian indoctrination, blissfully impervious now to dark past references concerning inquisition, widely expected to be vengeful and condemning, surprising everyone by freeing some of the killers of its own.
One exacting justice where none was expected, the other betraying justice where every ounce of it is the object of a flood of tears. The world exults and yet at the same time grieves. Terror, even in the administration of justice, prevails.
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