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US double standards Foreign Claims Act : an unfair law? By Sophia Barkat The article linked suggests that the wrongful death lawsuits of Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan by US Military must be tried under Afghani Law. http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20030516/USUITN/National/Idx "The action falls under the Foreign Claims Act in the United States and requires the family to use the legal statutes of the country where the incident took place." (quoting link) The lawyer representing the family of the Canadian soldier remarked, "How could you follow a law put in place by a group of rogues in a country just overthrown by the U.S. and its allies? Afghanistan had no law. We're jumping a bit here." I'm not sure what kind of laws existed in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan for the kind of dispute in consideration or whether it is better or worse than US Law though it seems that suing the Government can only lead to monetary settlements. It appears the families of the deceased prefer criminal or military trials and to see the guilty parties punished, grounded, not allowed to fly, rather than press charges against the US Government. From the article it seems that US law indicates that deaths of foreign nationals by US friendly-fire can be settled via lawsuits only. It is as though American guilty parties are safe from criminal or military prosecution by a foreign government. The US wishes the guilty party - whether civilian or military - on it's own. It therefore dictates that miilitary cases be settled via lawsuits between foreign governments. In contrast, the US spares no time to prosecute foreign war criminals in it's military courts - if you consider what's happening these days. I don't know why the US law dictates the lawsuit should be tried in the country in which the incident took place. Perhaps it is to evoke a sense of fairness in the trial, as though to cover-up the actual problem with the process -- the fact that such disputes lead to no criminal prosecution. I wonder if trying the US Govt. In this lawsuit under Afghan law would lead to a more fair judgement. |
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