US authorities have demanded and now have won the extradition of Gary McKinnon due to multiple hacking of computer systems in 2001 and 2002. McKinnon has been threatened by US prosecutors with decades in jail and even to “fry”.Photo: From Free Gary McKinnon website
What did Gary McKinnon do? He entered remote computers using backdoors and left some messages. As Martin Deane from Hull Green party said before the news of extradition: “We have a popular UFO society in Hull! Many cities do. It’s precisely the unexplained, the secret, the unknown, that makes investigation - and science itself - so attractive. He was following an intriguing hobby researching NASA information kept from the public. So what’s the worst case scenario? They now know where a number of their weaknesses are and they have some egg on their faces. How does that lead to threats of locking him up for 70 years? One lawyer is demanding he should fry! In this atmosphere, if we hand him over, it’s likely to be a lynch-mob not a trial.”
Mr Deane continued: “I’ve been in touch with Gary’s mum, Janis. She tells me: ‘Gary is a vegetarian; he is a gentle pacifist but his extradition has been relentlessly pursued by both the U.K and the American governments as though he is a terrorist. She says the European Court on Human Rights has turned down Gary's appeal but that it accepted Abu Hamza's and allowed him a stay, even though the Human Rights Points presented to the ECHR for Gary were virtually identical in both cases’! Where’s the justice in this?? The British government has a responsibility to protect Gary McKinnon. Because of Labour’s iniquitous Extradition Law, every court has failed to protect him so far. Now he is to be put at the mercy of the US justice system. It is time for our Home Secretary to show compassion, and an understanding of the serious disregard for the implications of Asperger’s Syndrome which the courts have taken, by refusing the extradition."
I have sent an email to David Drew MP urging his support an Early Day Motion just set up to stop the extradition - already Mark Harper, Forest MP is amongst the 10 signatures so far. Others reading this blog may also like to get support from their MPs.
David responded almost instantly to my email last night saying that he won't sign at the moment because it fails to mention that Gary McKinnon has been tried in this country regarding the extradition. He is happy for him to serve any sentence in this country (assuming he is found guilty!) but feels the other aspects of the EDM undermine British justice.
Here is what Janis, Gary McKinnons mum says: "I'm writing to ask you to please, please do everything you can to urge your MP to sign the EDM number 2388 (Early Day Motion) that has been tabled by my son Gary McKinnon's MP David Burrowes, re-the proposed extradition of my son Gary to the United States. Could all MP's who care enough please sign this EDM as soon as possible.... and to everyone else, please, please urge your MP to sign this Early Day Motion for Gary and we can hopefully get the current one sided extradition treaty back into the House of Commons for Debate and amendment to ensure that U.K citizens will not be extradited to the United States until assurances have been given that Gary and others like him will be allowed to serve their sentence in the U.K if convicted in the U.S."
4 comments:
The one sided Extradition Treaty is what undermines British Justice.
It has removed the rights of U.K citizens by allowing extradition without any evidence having to be shown.
This is back door rendition.
The U.K government has perversely signed a one sided extradition treaty that has given more rights to American citizens as we in the U.K have to provide actual proof/evidence before we can extradite a U.S citizen.
Gary McKinnon has always admitted computer misuse that would have attracted a sentence of six months community service at the time of the offence (almost seven years ago)....
but he has always denied causing the alleged damage that has been wrongly presented to the courts as "Fact".
The U.K government should be upholding the rights of U.K citizens rather than giving/signing those rights away to the American government for no apparent reason.
Any U.K citizen facing extradition is not allowed to challenge the allegations in a court of law but is only allowed to fight the extradition on Human Rights grounds.
This is not Justice
Excellent last comment - this is not justice.
Cross Party Politicians, (including David Blunket who signed the treaty) have come out to support Gary McKinnon to prevent him from being extradited or at the very least, to serve any sentence in the U.K
So David Drew MP should be ashamed of himself for doing as his Lords and Masters tell him.
Towing the party line even when the Extradition treaty is an afront to the legal system is not what Labour MP's were supposed to be about.
Evidence should always be required in order to extradite someone and no one should be extradited for a non violent crime such as computer misuse, which would have attracted a community service sentence at the time of Gary McKinnon commiting the crime.
See Link Below:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/nov/03/gary-kinnon-hacker-aspergers-extradition
I voted for Drew but he has got it wrong on this one - I hold out hope as he says he wont support 'at the moment'- come on David!
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