Terror legislation (and Cuban exile terrorist Posada)

[Mika]

Terror legislation
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/15750543.htm

Thank God the United States will not send Luis Posada Carriles to Cuba to stand trial for his alleged involvement in blowing up a Cuban airliner in 1976 in which more than 100 people were killed.

Since Fidel Castro views this freedom fighter as a terrorist, Posada would be subjected to a mockery of justice. He would be exempt from the Geneva protections for prisoners of war, which means Castro would define what treatment is torture. He also would be exempt from habeas corpus and could languish endlessly in jail.

If brought to trial he would not be tried in public by a jury of his peers, but tried by a secret tribunal. If the government felt like it, Posada could be barred from attending his own trial and examining the evidence against him. Confessions resulting from torture would be admitted, as would hearsay. Posada could not appeal the verdict or the sentence except to Castro.

Oops -- my bad! That's not Castro's system, that's the anti-terrorist bill the Congress just passed and President Bush signed into law. Never mind.

SAM FIELDS, Plantation

[SteppingRazor]

1. Yeah, Posada would probably be quickly executed in Cuba...

but it's no more mercy than he showed a bunch of innocent airline passengers.

Great letter. The fact that Posada continues to reside in America (and in my own back yard of South Florida to boot!) is an absolute travesty.

[Mika]

2. Actually, the Cuban gov has not requested extradition to Cuba.

The US and Cuba have no formal diplomatic relations (at the volition of the US), therefore no formal extradition agreement.

It is Venezuela that has made an extradition request because Posada escaped from a Venezuelan prison awaiting trial for the Cubana Airline bombing. (The US and Ven have extradition agreements.) Posada is a naturalized Venezuelan citizen.

The US courts have refused the Venezuelan extradition request on the laughable grounds that Posada might be subjected to torture in Venezuela.

The Cuban government has promised not to seek extradition of Posada from Venezuela if he were to be extradited by the US to Ven.

[SteppingRazor]

3. The problem there is...

Venezuela won't send people with dual American/Venezuelan citizenship who commit crimes in America and then flee to Venezuela back to America to stand trial for their crimes, which makes their bargaining position difficult, to say the least. (I know this from personal experience.)

[Judi Lynn]

4. Torture? That's a hoot.

They are perfectly aware that Posada Carriles, during his "stint" in Venezuela he ordered many torture treatments for victems of the Venezuelan government, under Carlos Andres Perez. There are victems who managed to live through it who have identified him in recent years.

What's more realistic is their knowledge that if Luis Posada Carriles were EVER to be given into the custody of Venezuelan authorities, or Cuban officials, he would immediately spill his guts and give them all a complete breakdown of all his activities, and Orlando Bosch's, all Cuban "exile" terrorists organizations, Operation Condor, CORU, and the CIA activities he was involved in during his lifetime, Iran-Contra, drug-dealing, and everything he even heard of, but didn't do personally, and it would be one great big black eye for the lunatic right-wing U.S. administrations which employed his services.

Yeah, fear of being tortured. You bet.