Get Away With Murder
When it comes to war crimes, especially those committed under heightened emotional circumstances, it is utterly impossible for the military of a nation that refuses to adhere to the authority of the International Criminal Court to try their own. But that is precisely what has happened with regards to the Marines involved in the massacre in Haditha in 2005.
As of yesterday, all but two Marines have been cleared of all charges against them concerning the incident. Some point to that as vindication. I, on the other hand, do not, especially given the fact that numerous Iraqi witnesses weren’t even heard from. Why would they be? After all, they’re not ‘credible’ – they’re Iraqis.
You see; you can set a country ‘free’, but viewing its citizens as anything but beneath you is simply out of the question.
So, yesterday, Lt Andrew Grayson, who had been charged with obstruction of justice and making false statements in the aftermath of the incident, walked. The crowd in attendance at the trial at Camp Pendleton cheered when the verdict of Grayson’s acquittal was read. One probably can’t say the same for those in Haditha whose voices weren’t even heard.
For many, what occurred that day is most likely nothing more than a vague media memory now. Since I started writing about the incident several Marines have contacted me and admonished me for my views, claiming that the acquittal of those involved proves that no wrongdoing occurred. My response is always the same – those innocents that died that day will see no justice, nor will the testimonies of those Iraqis that witnessed what happened ever be taken seriously. Given that, how can true justice prevail?
The rule of law? What rule of law? The United States military, and those contractors in the employ of the Pentagon and State Department, have absolutely no right to even utter that phrase when they, themselves, cannot be held accountable for their actions under Iraqi law. The United States has not brought the rule of law to Iraq; it has brought nothing more than hypocritical contradiction.
It comes down to a simple position – do you believe that the Marine Corps can try its own impartially given the already inflammatory state of the war with regards to US domestic perceptions?
My answer? Absolutely not.
On this side of the ocean the incident has been largely forgotten. As for what Iraqis think, what does that ultimately matter? The United States hasn’t taken the disposition of the Iraqi people seriously for some time now, if ever. The Pentagon does not, nor have they ever, even attempted to keep a record of Iraqi civilian casualties. For all intents and purposes they got away with Abu Ghraib. Blackwater, shielded by the protections of the State Department, got away with the Nisour Square massacre. And God knows how many other criminal events have gone unchecked since 2003?
Sure, there have been a few incidents that have led to serious repercussions, such as the rape and murder of a 14 year old girl and her family in 2006 in Mahmoudiya. Due to the extreme nature of that incident, it being the premeditated rape of a minor, severe punishments were handed out. But the same cannot be said of the rapes that took place at Abu Ghraib, nor have those that have first hand knowledge of them ever been taken seriously.
You can throw a few soldiers to the wolves here and there in an attempt to achieve the perception of judicial transparency, but the fact remains that the rule of law is not something that the United States is all that interested in as it applies to the conduct of its personnel in Iraq. In fact, they opted out of the ICC for that very reason.
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June 5th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Is it not possible that only two marines are criminally responsible for what happened?
I’m sorry I don’t know all the details.
June 5th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
It shows you that us people from the US have a gvernment with to much swing in the international community.
It shows why people hate our military(the soldiers at least), instead of the ones in charge of them. Because we let the minority whom does something wrong get away with it.
And you know why people don’t take much atention to it around here? “Support Your Trrops” and that doesn’t mean those whom act honorabley, that means them all. We are supposed to treat all of them with respect when there are some that earn themselves a bad reputation.
Plus,with the whole media and the way it goes, this is no big deal, and maybe it wouldn’t if this went in a more justifiable way(if they chose not to cver it), but it is more of a PR thing than a justice issue.
Heck it isn’t just in war crimes. Pat Tillman is just another example of the problems that go on in the whole mess of the war in Iraq, and any war.
June 5th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
Far too many Marines were given immunity for their testimony. Immunity is to be used as a last-ditch tradeoff in order to convict those responsible for the most serious of crimes. Instead, those given immunity, for the most part, have only incriminated themselves for their own misdeeds, including everything from killing unarmed people to taking photos of the aftermath - how helpful.
In the end, immunity simply used as as a method of protection. Many people who did some of the worst things that day got off scot-free. All of them knew what happened, yet sat on their hands. This can only be seen as vindication and justice by those who don’t care about justice, or those who were killed.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:24 pm
I hate the “eggshell” attitude of military soldiers here in regards to talking about them in any negative way. There are some in the military that are a**holes in or out of uniform. To speak badly of them is like your being unpatriotic and bashing your country. I appreciate what they are doing but the second they commit a horrible act they are no better than any other criminal.
An example is the marine who threw the puppy off that cliff, and was never investigated. There is an example of some of the idiots who make it into the military and get to act subhuman and subsequently not have to worry about repercussions. Lets face it, rocket scientists and mensa candidates aren’t signing up for the military. I’m not saying they are all stupid, but there is a lot of young kids in the military who are not mentally mature yet. Add to that poor decision making skills, stress, and power over people in a foreign land.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
CNN will show dead infant bodies stacked up in a morgue in Africa, but did they ever show any of the infants and children in Haditha who were riddled with bullets? I at least hope the people who made these decisions to “clear” the soldiers had to look at those images and make their choices. I hope they are haunted by them everyday, because I certainly think about them often.
June 6th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
A great line from Terrance Malick’s The Thin Red Line:
“I killed a man. The worst thing you could do. Even worse than rape. I killed a man and no one can touch me for it.”
June 6th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
Why bring Pat TILLMAN into the discussion?
MALICK’s movie was okay but I think the worst thing you could do is let that other guy kill you. That is infinitely more profound.
As for the puppy getting thrown off the cliff? Well, I call bullshit on that, if that were to happen everyone would be screaming for that guy’s head. True, the military is filled with young people but that’s where the NCO’s and officers come in to play, they are the ones that are supposed to keep control of their men. A break down of any kind can generally be traced back there.