Ashamed of My Country
Posted on Thursday the 12th of June, 2008 at 11:24amLast night the British parliament narrowly voted to increase the length of time someone can be detained without charge under provision of the 'Counter-Terrorism Act' – from 28 days to 42 days. When I watched the vote, I felt a real, aching sense of sorrow and of shame. What a world we are making...
It's strange (and actually generally pleasant) being back in my root country for a while – it's only just now beginning to feel a bit familiar again, rather than alien or a ghosting dream of the past. I suppose one gets used to a place – and I have got used to America. I'm under no illusions about how similar developments could go in the U.S., where civil liberties are also being systematically eroded under the guise of 'protecting' us; but, for today at least, I feel glad I don't live in a culture that is prepared to go quite this far...
I think it's most important to remember that this isn't an abstract discussion. So here's an account by Rizwaan Sabir, a student who was recently subjected to this kind of detention with no due cause, of what it's actually like to be detained... It is the audio from a short video posted last night on the guardian.co.uk website, in response to the vote.
What it's like to be detained without charge (audio)
You can watch the original video here:
What it's like to be detained without charge (video)