News coverage of Charles Clarke and the rampant foreigners.

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(Summary: 1000 foreign released criminals weren't considered for deportation)

Is it just me, or has the coverage of this case been really weird? Everyone seems to be buying into the idea that there's something 'magic' about foreigners that means the justice system doesn't stick to them. If it was just the usual rags saying "Prison doesn't work, hang em' all etc", it would be one thing, but the blatant racism is really unpleasant.

The headlines on the tabloids almost make it seem like a prison break, and even the Guardian fell over into "should have been deported" instead of "should have been considered for deportation". It's like reading 12 copies of the Daily Mail :(

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Wednesday, 26 April 2006 07:45 (twenty years ago)

I see your point, but as the government (well, Blunkett when he introduced the law allowing it) specifically said that foreign criminals WOULD be deported post-sentence, and in most of these cases the judge at trial said recommended that they be deported after release, it's not that far off the mark to say "they should have been kicked out" rather than "they should have been considered for a kicking out".

And I don't think it's really racist, either — all the criticism is aimed at the Home Office rather than the murderers, drug dealers and kiddy-fiddlers themselves and the deportation is just an extension of the usual "lock em up" rhetoric. By which I mean that the papers are taking a "we're not being protected from criminals as well as we could be" line rather than a "we're at the mercy of foreigners" one.

That's all phrased really badly. I'll be more together after a coffee.

― Hello Sunshine (Hello Sunshine), Wednesday, 26 April 2006 08:02 (twenty years ago)

Deport farrel he's questioning the system and looks a bit dodgy.

I've not seen a great deal of the non bbc coverage, being abroad (its all about the brussels mp3 murder here and the 'north africans' who turned out to be poles who were caught, on cctv, in the act and the parents of the boy who have been hanging out with poles and trying to stem the knee-jerk racisism of the case). However, my impression of the case is that the media somehow seem to be expecting Clarke himself to be running around with a truncheon catching all of these crims. Your right though, and not just wirth foreigners, the media is driving the idea that the justice system should not/could never be be about redemption and rehabilitation but should simply keep the crims away from us.

― Ed (dali), Wednesday, 26 April 2006 08:05 (twenty years ago)

the media is driving the idea that the justice system should not/could never be be about redemption and rehabilitation but should simply keep the crims away from us.

riiight, so when tony blairs told the observers that all criminals should leave the country on sunday, that was the media 'driving' things. it's an ethical no-brainer here, not sure it's the right moment for a debate on the point of imprisonment etc -- which needs to be had, but saying 'oh, but prison should be about redemption' isn't adequate to the charges of incompetence here.

― 25 yr old slacker cokehead (Enrique), Thursday, 27 April 2006 08:11 (twenty years ago)

I can't help getting a "stealing our jobs" vibe from the coverage of this. Like "We can rape our own women thank you very much Mr Johnny Foreigner!"

― Onimo (GerryNemo), Thursday, 27 April 2006 08:36 (twenty years ago)

Tony Blair can't even hassle his own kids into obeying him so what chance has he with ooh basically everyone else?

― suzy (suzy), Thursday, 27 April 2006 08:38 (twenty years ago)

he's like tony soprano in that respect.

― 25 yr old slacker cokehead (Enrique), Thursday, 27 April 2006 08:39 (twenty years ago)

He'll be fine when ~~Peter Mandelson~~ the ducks come back.

― Onimo (GerryNemo), Thursday, 27 April 2006 08:47 (twenty years ago)

But aren't people convicted of crimes released every day? The deportation is the issue here not the crimes surely? I hate it when I read a headline and then ahve to work out whta the actual fking story is. Don't get me wrong i'd like to deport Charles Clarke is i had the chance but I'm pretty sure every governemtn ever has released murderers and rapists and then couldn't account for them all the time...

― Ned T.Rifle (nedtrifle), Thursday, 27 April 2006 13:10 (twenty years ago)

the judge in most cases said 'this guy should be deported on release' is the thing.

― 25 yr old slacker cokehead (Enrique), Thursday, 27 April 2006 13:11 (twenty years ago)

Most cases = just over a hundred according to the Guardian yesterday.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Thursday, 27 April 2006 13:21 (twenty years ago)

As I understand, it is up to the CPS and/or the Home Office to ask the judge to slap deportation on to the end of the jail term. They have not always done so.

― Ed (dali), Thursday, 27 April 2006 13:23 (twenty years ago)

This is the kind of thing that sounds easy...surely you just keep the person in question in custody until they are deported? But in reality I can see this being a nightmare of logistics and/or legal problems. The home office has always been a bum deal for governments and it's pure political posturing for any party to pretend otherwise.
(blimey that's a lot of 'p's)

― Ned T.Rifle (nedtrifle), Thursday, 27 April 2006 14:41 (twenty years ago)

ahh, poor government :0(

― 25 yr old undercover cop (Enrique), Thursday, 27 April 2006 14:42 (twenty years ago)

one month passes...

this has taken an interesting turn...

― Roughage Crew (Enrique), Monday, 26 June 2006 20:36 (nineteen years ago)

Charles clarke is angry, or at least still wounded and hurt. Get a grip or go seems to be the message. Could Clarke be a stalking horse come conference this autumn, if Blair hasn't got a grip that is?

― Ed (dali), Tuesday, 27 June 2006 05:13 (nineteen years ago)

Charles Clarke vs. John Reid. What a choice...

― Ned T.Rifle (nedtrifle), Tuesday, 27 June 2006 06:37 (nineteen years ago)

they don't come much worse than reid...

― Roughage Crew (Enrique), Tuesday, 27 June 2006 07:49 (nineteen years ago)

http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/steve_bell/2006/05/24/steve.jpg

― beanz (beanz), Tuesday, 27 June 2006 08:27 (nineteen years ago)

one year passes...

Charles Clarke's desire to be the man to bring down Gordon Brown is both cute and fucking ridiculous at the same time.

― Dom Passantino, Wednesday, 13 February 2008 10:15 (eighteen years ago)

two years pass...

http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/940/gpb.jpg/

― Greatest contributor: (history mayne), Friday, 7 May 2010 11:55 (sixteen years ago)

http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/830/gpboc.jpg

― Greatest contributor: (history mayne), Friday, 7 May 2010 11:56 (sixteen years ago)

ha this fat mangy pachyderm cunt had it coming

― nakhchivan, Friday, 7 May 2010 11:59 (sixteen years ago)

this is the best news of the night imo

― caek, Friday, 7 May 2010 12:01 (sixteen years ago)

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