Guilty unless proven innocent
There was a time when humanity and general legal systems believed in the adage 'innocent unless proven guilty'. However, with time, we have come to a point when every person who comes under the legal scanner of any countries judiciary is 'guilty unless proven innocent'.That however, is not the point I wish to make.
News channels went abuzz with the news of the Australian Federal authorities dropping all terrorism charges against Dr Mohd. Haneef in the case of failed bomb attacks in London. Although Haneef is in home detention and waits for a decision on his immigration status, his family in Bangalore is quite relieved with his out of custody status only.
(The 27-year-old had his visa revoked after he was charged with giving "reckless support" to terrorism. The charge was withdrawn on today after Australia's chief prosecutor admitted "a mistake has been made".)
It's all quite nice and I'm sure a lot of people are happy for Haneef.
However, this brings up to some question that need to be addressed now:
Does this help in repairing the damage that has been done to the fabric of Islam so far?
Does this end the constant scrutiny Muslims live under all through the world?
Does this mean that no Muslim will be picked up and traumatised for simply belonging to the community?
Can someone tell me what now?
In fact, even for Haneef, the nightmare is not really over. He will be forever under the scanner wherever he goes. He will be carrying the label of being involved in terror strikes - even if it was a mistake - for the rest of his life. And currently, he might just get deported instead of travelling back the normal way.
I know a lot of people may think that I'm being too cynical... but the way innocent people of in the community have been put through hell, I suppose I'm just being realistic.
Any thoughts?
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