The resignation of Judge Rizgar Amin, the lead judge in the trial of Saddam Hussein, jeopardizes the imposition of justice upon the former dictator. With the trial dragging on with O.J. Simpson-like qualities, there is an increasingly higher probability that Saddam Hussein will elude justice. Since the trial started, concerns over security have been high.
Judge Amin was one of only two judges to appear on television. Members of the defence counsel have resigned and been murdered. This should come as no surprise in a country where the dictator’s supporters are numerous and capable of doing anything to help get their leader acquitted. Witnesses, whose appearances in court were already tenuous, are likely to be more apprehensive in the wake of the judge’s resignation. Many will likely refuse to testify for fear that they too may become a target of Saddam’s fanatical supporters. With Saddam Hussein’s supporters likely still active behind the scenes, can there be any question that the trial may yet fail?
With the court weakened, Saddam Hussein may be set free due to a lack of evidence, a legal technicality discovered by one of the defence counsel, or a failure of the prosecution to adequately prove its case. With Saddam free and the insurgents still inflicting damage on the coalition forces, the Iraqi police and security forces, and ordinary Iraqi citizens, a new party would undoubtedly surface with a galvanizing leader at its helm. Promising to end the insurgency (which may be backed by his own supporters) and bring peace to Iraq, Saddam Hussein and his loyalists could quickly rise to power with their new party and seek to recapture control of Iraq. Presenting himself as a reformed man and ensuring that he will uphold democracy in Iraq by working with the duly elected parliament, Saddam Hussein could be quickly swept back into power only to eventually return to his dictatorial ways and undo all the good work that has been done since he was ousted from power nearly three years ago. He would return to power wrapped in the Iraqi flag by uniting people with empty promises, rhetoric, and propaganda in the same legal fashion that brought Hitler to power in Germany in 1933.
The trial of Saddam Hussein can indeed survive the resignation of one judge. However, the new government of Iraq must ensure that their legal system does not fail this important test. The failure of the legal system would have devastating consequences for Iraq and its people and would set a dangerously destabilizing precedent for the future. Therefore, the trial must continue and be seen through to its conclusion. The prosecutors, the judges, and the witnesses must be brave, courageous, and bold in the defence of their legal system and rise to the challenge to ensure that justice is served. To fail is to set back the clock in Iraq and to hand the country back to Saddam Hussein and his loyalists for good.
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