In the name of the Father

What is Justice?

Justice is different between reality and legal system.

Let's start by reviewing a movie I recently just watched. "In the name of the Father" is a dramatized movie depicting the life of real-life wrongly convicted bomber of Guildford pub in Britain. It tells the story of Gerard Conlon with three other people who are known as Guildford four with additional Maguire seven. These eleven people were wrongly convicted for the bombing in the Guildford pub which was at the height of the era of The troubles. The troubles itself was an era which is simply called as an nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland. Specifically, it involved the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) fighting for the independence Northern Ireland from United Kingdom. Moreover, the case of Guildford bombing was actually carried out by the real IRA members.

In reality however, the story was different. In the 1970's, Gerry Conlon went to London from Belfast to start a new life. However, destiny brought him into living like hell. At the wrong place at the wrong time, Gerry with his two other friends who are Irish were convicted for the bombing in Guildford pub. Fast forward, within the era of the Troubles, UK issued an order called Prevention of Terrorism Act in so-called War on terror. Under this provision, police officer has the right and authority to held the suspected up to seven days even without any charges. With this act, police officer held Gerry and the rest of Guildford four under harsh interrogation, intimidation and torture. With mentally and physically tortured, they were pressured to confess with a fabricated document. In my opinion, Prevention of Terrorism Act is a very dangerous act that should be annulled. Their confessions – unrecorded and unwitnessed – were the only evidence that is brought against them in the court. Under this circumstance, these eleven innocent people were imprisoned for the crime they did not commit.

Giuseppe Conlon, who is Gerry's father, was dead in prison. Before convicted, he went to London after Gerry was taken by the police. His intent was to seek a lawyer in order to get Gerry out of conviction. However, police officer instead took him and the Maguire seven and held them under a charge of supporting the Guildford bombing on the basis of nitroglycerin traces, they therefore received long terms of imprisonment. What disgust me more is how the police investigator knew the truth about the real bomber but instead turned a blind eye after that and kept on going on their life without feeling guilty. I feed bad for these people who miscarriage the justice, they don't have a sense of humanity, they don't have moral anymore.

With politics involved in the case, these innocent people were intentionally charged by the police as a scapegoat to the bombing. What disgust me more is that how the government tried to get away with the investigation to the bombing and just let these innocent people convicted with a crime they obviously did not commit.

Government as being political with the legal system which is afraid of making a mistake left behind these innocent eleven people to serve in prison for 15 years. Government and legal system is a dangerous duo that can either help or hurt their own citizen. In this case, both Government and Legal system was obviously hurting their citizen.

This guildford case is just a little example of how a real life system of justice is far behind that to what intended of such ideal justice. I can only described this as very absurd. A legal system whose sole purpose is to enforce justice instead led the innocent people pay the price of a crime they did not commit. There is always a loophole in a system. It is our duty as a human to decide which one is morally right and legally right. However, legally right is the only system that can brought upon injustices toward innocent people. Morally right has always been set aside by the human itself because of the greed that is imposed both in the system and, well, the human.

Justice, in real life, does not applied only in one meaning. In reality, justice is divided between the weak and the powerful. The powerful always have their own way to get away with their evil conduct while the weak is, as sounds as it names, weak even just to seek justice for something that they did not commit. With this case, those powerful people such police officers who can get away from their miscarriage of justice who should be arrested for this case was in fact declared not guilty by British legal system. On the other hand, these eleven people who were innocent and did not commit the crime spent 15 years in prison and had to fight for their own freedom. How absurd the world we live in. How absurd innocent people can be imprisoned while the one who committed a crime can get away with punishment. All of this absurdity happen under the name of legal system. Where legal system actually should carry out justice, in fact, it only serves the powerful people.

Therefore, there is a reason why a system can work on its opposite direction, leaving behind its supposed direction.

The loophole in the system enabled such injustices to occur.

Justice in real life is different to legal system. I always believed in justice in real life rather than justice in legal system. There is no justice in legal system. In simple statement, I don't believe in justice provided by government anymore.

Guildford four is not a rare case of miscarriage of justice, there are countless cases in this world that is actually happen in a similar pattern. However, the powerful people has always been so powerful to hide the truth under the name of legal system and government. Evil conduct by the powerful can never be brought to justice because they own the justice system. The weak has to suffer under this system.

December 6th, 2017