Monday, November 28, 2005

A letter to the Prime Minister

Dear Prime Minister John Howard,

On Friday, 2nd December, Nguyen Tuong Van is due to be executed in Singapore. Nguyen made a terrible mistake, attempting to take drugs back to Australia, was caught and is now on death row.

On Friday, you are planning to play cricket for the Prime Minister's XI. Do you really think this is appropriate? Australia does not support the death penalty. Australians have come out to say Nguyen should not pay for his mistake by losing his life and you too have supported this view.

It is simply a callous act for you to be gallivanting down the pitch, and wearing the baggy green, as Nguyen walks his death walk. Nguyen's mother and Nguyen himself were 'blown away' that you took the time out to meet her. How do you think she is going to feel now? You say you "think the Australian people will understand". Do you think his mother will understand? It is simply a respectful act, Mr Howard to leave the cricket aside on Friday as a protest against the barbarism of the death penalty - which in terms of justice is a lie.

Sincerely,
Gwyn


If you too are interested in emailing John Howard, follow this link..
http://www.pm.gov.au/email.cfm

2 comments:

tempo dulu said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
kerwyn said...

Indcoup - if you will, have a look at Brueggemann's thoughts on the dominant version of reality being violence, found here: http://www.ccanz.net.nz/dov/resources/brueggemann.html Brueggemann also writes, in the book, 'Deep Memory, Exuberant Hope', that the taproot of violence is silence, of having no say in the future of the community or our own lives. If we collude in the silence, we, even if we are the abused, protect the abuser until the killing comes. Brueggemann also writes that another taproot of violence is the breakdown of connections. Nguyen is sentenced to death in Singapore, a country with which he holds little or no connection. As an Australian, I have a connection with Nguyen, and I think you would agree his mother holds a connection. Therefore, the reason the Singaporeans could choose not to execute Nguyen would cut off an inexorable cycle of violence, which Brueggemann would, I think, argue is at its root an economic violence.