What Punishment Would Fit?

The Scene of an Apparent Massacre by U.S. Forces in Haditha
President Bush’s term for his reaction to the allegations of a deliberate murder of civilians in Haditha is “troubled.” Secretary of State Rice used the same term on CNN with Wolf Blitzer. How about “full of righteous anger”? Or, if that implies that the outcome of the investigation and a possible trial were pre-decided, how about “determined to seek both truth and rigorous justice”? What punishment would such an act, were it proven, merit? And what will be the reaction of those who support and those who oppose the war? Will the former brush the act and the punishment off as a detail, and will the latter try to excuse the actions of the perpetrators (assuming such an outcome of a judicial process) as caused by an evil war, and maintain that they are not responsible? Will some use it to conclude that all insurgent acts of violence, against U.S. and allied forces, against Iraqi soldiers, against police recruits and religious pilgrims and trash collectors, are justified? I fear that most public discussion will try to use the case to advance the pre-set agendas of the commentators, rather than to seek justice or to draw any conclusions.

The people of Haditha have been victimized by all sides. The guilty in all cases should face justice.

For my money, if the acts were the murders they seem to be (and the evidence that’s been leaked so far sure looks that way), the punishment should be the maximum available to the law, for the gunmen, for any superiors who may have ordered it or been complicit in it, and for anyone who may have participated in a coverup.

In the meantime, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has said that his government would conduct its own investigation, that “there is a limit to the acceptable excuses,” and that his government will move to disarm the various rival sectarian militias (some operating within Iraqi ministries, notably the Ministry of the Interior, as well as within various police units, others independent and not infilitrated into the state) that have been carrying out revenge killings, executing dissidents, and victimizing the innocent by enforcing the most extreme and brutal versions of allegedly Islamic law. Let us hope that he is successful at asserting his government’s interests in independence and in disarming the militias that are victimizing the Iraqi people.

The situation is likely to get worse unless the U.S. makes a credible commitment, not only to turn over more military responsibilities to Iraqi forces, but to withdraw American forces. Without a clear and credible commitment to leave, there will be little incentive for Iraqis to forge their own peace.

An Earlier Massacre by Insurgents, also in Haditha

UPDATE: According to the Iraqi LGBT UK website,

Following two weeks of negotiations with Iraqi LGBT — UK, Sistani’s office agreed to remove the fatwa calling for the murder of gay men, but has curiously refused to remove the fatwa urging punishment for lesbianism.

Sistani had issued a statement that was remarkable for its wickedness, namely,

Q5: What is the judgment for sodomy and lesbianism?
A5: Forbidden. Punished, in fact, killed. The people involved should be killed in the worst, most severe way possible.

Credible allegations have been made, by the Iraqi LGBT UK group, among others, that militias of the type that Prime Minister al-Maliki has pledged to disarm (and whose disarmament Sistani has also supported) have targeted gay Iraqis and those suspected to be gay and murdered them. If the story of the negotiations about the withdrawal of the evil statement is true, it is a story of remarkable courage on the part of Iraqi gay activists, who have suffered along with the rest of the population, but who must fear, not only sectarian, ethnic, or random violence and terrorism, but additionally the threat of being killed for their sexuality.