Afghan Protestors Not To Be Charged

Kintarō Hattori

Sorry mods if this is the wrong place or if there is already a thread dealing with this, didn't see one.

I just saw on the news there tonight that the Afghans who occupied St. Patricks Cathedral a few weeks back are not to be charged over the affair. I do have to say I think this is rediculous. They didn't wait for the outcome of their appeals process, they caused so much disruption, they had minors involved, and god forbid if any christian was to occupy a mosque.

What does anyone else think of this? Should they be charged or not?

Heyes

Did they say why the court had decided not to charge them ?

Dave!

What were they to be charged with, does anyone know? Did the Church of Ireland drop their own complaints?

_Kaiser_

As far as I know the church dropped the complaints the next day. Of more concern is whether they'll be deported or quietly allowed to stay now that the media spotlight is off the story?

Mossy Monk

when will we see them on a plane out of here?

frobisher

The only thing they should be charged is rent!

BMH

Church->Police Car->Plane->Afghanistan->Guantanamo/Famine/Civil War

Problem solved.

Kintarō Hattori

http://www.rte.ie/news/2006/0619/asylum.html

The charges were dropped by the DPP.

seamus

Without the Church's complaint it would be tough to bring a successful prosecution against them. In fairness, twould be a little hypocritical for a Christian church to pursue such charges.

Kintarō Hattori

seamus wrote:

Without the Church's complaint it would be tough to bring a successful prosecution against them. In fairness, twould be a little hypocritical for a Christian church to pursue such charges.

True enough, but it just seems annoying. If this was someone else they'd be prosecuted till the cows came home. What most annoyed me about the whole situation is that they protested in such a manner when their asylum case hadn't even finished.

DadaKopf

I'm thrilled about this, but not surprised. Their vindication will now wipe off the stain of criminality that the Department of Justice tactically tainted them with.

The charges were, as I said in other threads, always going to be dropped. They were charged with trespassing, but the property owner refused to press charges. In such a case, there's essentially no grounds on which to prosecute. So the DPP dismissed the case.

Now I want to know who leaked confidential information relating to rape allegations about one of the hunger strikers to the press. The Department of Justice has this among many other things to answer for.

BMH

DadaKopf wrote:

I'm thrilled about this, but not surprised. Their vindication will now wipe off the stain of criminality that the Department of Justice tactically tainted them with.

The charges were, as I said in other threads, always going to be dropped. They were charged with trespassing, but the property owner refused to press charges. In such a case, there's essentially no grounds on which to prosecute. So the DPP dismissed the case.

Now I want to know who leaked confidential information relating to rape allegations about one of the hunger strikers to the press. The Department of Justice has this among many other things to answer for.

Huh?
So they weren't criminals like we were told? I couldn't care less if they were a bunch of modern-day Ghandis, they took over a church for "poo" sake. They get into the country, and don't get instanst deported like they would in other countries so they comandeer a building and start threatening to hang themselves as if anyone gives a crap.

seamus

DadaKopf wrote:

Now I want to know who leaked confidential information relating to rape allegations about one of the hunger strikers to the press. The Department of Justice has this among many other things to answer for.

As a matter of interest, were these allegations of something which took place here, or in Afghanistan? If it was the latter, I'm not sure how accountable the Justice Dept. can be held.

xha1r

I don't understand why threads like these aren't moved to Politics? Surely they shouldn't be in AH? Just something I've always wondered considering soccer threads are banned and will result in punishment?

Darkman9999

Afghans hve gone through a lot in of s*** in their country under the Taliban regieme so I support them, they will be in dire circumstances if deported. The US did the right thing in getting rid of them but the country is very unstable, give it a few years and who knows they may be able to go home to a democratic secure society with oppurtunities.

nesf

It's because soccer threads outside of the soccer forum just result in users abusing/insulting/flaming each other within a very short period of time. They are "special".

InFront

nesf wrote:

It's because soccer threads outside of the soccer forum just result in users abusing/insulting/flaming each other within a very short period of time. They are "special".

But not everybody can use soccer, and politics is available, and under-used. Threads like this invariably attract small minded people who come on to mourn the infiltration of their lovely green country with crazy terrorists oir something and wonder 'why cant they all be more like us'

I know team bashing is annoying on the soccer threads, but religion bashing is just as annoying and repetitive, if not more objectionable.

DadaKopf

seamus wrote:

As a matter of interest, were these allegations of something which took place here, or in Afghanistan? If it was the latter, I'm not sure how accountable the Justice Dept. can be held.

The information pertaining to the lad's allegation (which I believe happened outside Ireland) is confidential information in this jurisdiction, therefore, leaking sensitive information is a crime.

Now, I want to know whether it was a deliberate tactic by the Dept Justice - either by McDowell (who loves looking at and leaking secret information) or someone in Justice, or a slip of the tongue to the press by an official.

Kintarō Hattori

InFront wrote:

Threads like this invariably attract small minded people who come on to mourn the infiltration of their lovely green country with crazy terrorists oir something and wonder 'why cant they all be more like us'

That's an interesting statement, and one which I don't think anyone who has so far commented on the thread has used any of. No-one here has mentioned the word terrorist, nor stated that that they wished they could be more like them.

The majority of people so far have simply expressed anger that these people did something illegal and will get away with it. Were the same to happen in a holy place of their religion, the accused would most likely not be let off.

That is all. Please don't try to flame the situation with your ill thought out opinions.

InFront

Just wait and see, or look at all the other posts that started like this

Hitchhiker's Guide to...

AH does become a strange and terrible place when non-native Irish (or Irish people who are travellors) are discussed.

nesf

Personally I blame the huge amount of closet xenophobics in this country.

InFront

nesf wrote:

Personally I blame the huge amount of closet xenophobics in this country.

Yes but these are one group who are probably better off not 'coming out'.

On this topic I am glad that they are not going to be charged. I think they were a bit foolish in their method of protesting, but they seem like otherwise reasonable people. Fair play to the Church of Ireland for being so forgiving.

nesf

Personally I think they should have been prosecuted. What they did was illegal and I have zero time for people trying to circumvent our refugee system. Nothing racist about it. I just have issues with people breaking the law.

Hitchhiker's Guide to...

Me too. Although part of me thinks about the uproar over the jailing of Rossport Five. Sometimes people feel a need to take the law into their own hands. Hope it never happens to me.

Our man in Havana

We still have the annual illegals roundup and deportations during July and August to look forward to. Funny how these occur when the courts and the Dail are not sitting.

HelterSkelter

xha1r wrote:

I don't understand why threads like these aren't moved to Politics? Surely they shouldn't be in AH? Just something I've always wondered considering soccer threads are banned and will result in punishment?

The only reason I can think of is that in the Politics forum people actually know what they are talking about. AH is the place where all the brainless evening herald/sun/star/mirror readers can have their say on the topic of the day.

nesf

HelterSkelter wrote:

The only reason I can think of is that in the Politics forum people actually know what they are talking about. AH is the place where all the brainless evening herald/sun/star/mirror readers can have their say on the topic of the day.

You forgot the indo readers there.

super_furry

HelterSkelter wrote:

The only reason I can think of is that in the Politics forum people actually know what they are talking about. AH is the place where all the brainless evening herald/sun/star/mirror readers can have their say on the topic of the day.

Well then you and you superiority better scurry off back there before you get dragged down with the 'brainless' masses. Quick, run!

Kintarō Hattori

Mods- Could you please lock this thread. It has deteriorated into mindless squabbling. I had originally wanted to voice my opinion that I was somewhat annoyed that these people who had broken the law, regardless of their ethnic origions, were not going to be charged for having broken the law.

But clearly I am a racist because I mentioned a group of people who are not Irish in a negative fashion. Also I am clearly brainless and an ignorant excuse for a human being because I chose to start a thread in AH and not the politics forum.

This thread has started to become rediculous and people are quibbling and nothing positive or informative can come from it.

um7y1h83ge06nx

Before this thread gets locked, I think what annoys me about this whole affair is that they never gave the asylum system here a chance to fully process their applications before they decided to comandeer a church.

Obviously an exception couldn't be made for these people as then all the other asylum seekers would have been discriminated against.

HelterSkelter

super_furry wrote:

Well then you and you superiority better scurry off back there before you get dragged down with the 'brainless' masses. Quick, run!

I never said I consider myself part of the superior Politics crowd!

hepcat

What angered me about the Afghan asylum seekers was that their attitude was "Give us the legal right to stay in your country or we will force the matter, by breaking your laws". This just seems inherently wrong and cynical, and I cannot fathom what they thought the outcome to this type of threat would be - a cead mile failte? It's not a million miles away from the suicide bomber mentality which is anathema to most westerners. I know there is a lot of intolerance around, but it works both ways, and the whole episode did the Afghan community no favours at all.

Dave!

HelterSkelter wrote:

I never said I consider myself part of the superior Politics crowd!

Well then you're one of us!

one of us, one of us, one of us.....