Curbs urged on extraditing terrorists to US

A DRIVE TO GET ALL 15 MEMBER NATIONS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION TO AGREE NOT TO EXTRADITE TERRORIST SUSPECTS TO THE U.S. unless the U.S. promises they will not face the death penalty is being spearheaded by the Belgian Minister of Justice, Marc Verwilghen. Belgium currently holds the presidency of the EU.

Verwilghen and other EU justice ministers plan to meet with U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft in mid-October to discuss the issue. European nations routinely refuse to extradite criminal suspects to countries where they might face execution.

Reasons why terrorists should not be executed were spelled out earlier this year in a New York Times op-ed article (2/28/01) by Jessica Stern, a former National Security Council member who currently lectures at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. "Execution of terrorists, especially minor operatives," she wrote, "has effects that go beyond retribution or justice. The executions play right into the hands of our adversaries. We turn criminals into martyrs, invite retaliatory strikes, and enhance the public relatiions and fund-raising strategies of our enemies."

At An Oct. 1 press conference in Rome, Cardinal Edward Egan of New York said that justice must be done if and when the instigators of the Sept. 11 attacks can be identified, but that it is important to avoid unjust responses. "Words like 'vengeance' and 'reprisals' are not worthy of a civilized people," he was quoted as saying in a Catholic World News report. He further stated that the attacks should lead people to realize "the necessity for an examination of conscience," and acknowledged that the U.S. should reexamine some of its national policies