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UK government failed Bleach, admits Straw

Rifat Jawaid in Calcutta

British Home Secretary Jack Straw admitted Saturday that the British government had failed to represent Peter Bleach's case before the Indian authorities.

Bleach, whom a sessions court judge in Calcutta sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment earlier this year for his involvement in the Purulia arms drop case, has been languishing in a Calcutta prison for a long time now. All other accused in the case have been released following a presidential pardon.

Addressing a news conference in Calcutta, Straw said he had raised the issues with regards to Peter Bleach with Union Home Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani and West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu.

"We have been providing consular services and representation to Mr Bleach. We do the same to any British national placed in similar circumstances. I admit that in making representation and expressing concerns in Mr Bleach's case, we weren't very forthcoming. But it is primarily due to the fact that we also show respect for the judicial system of a democratic state," Straw said.

Replying to Bleach's repeated accusation that the United Kingdom abandoned him in his moments of agony, Straw said: "I strongly believe that Mr Bleach has not been abandoned by the British government. By my India visit I have passed on the concern expressed by the British government about two aspects in particular of Mr Bleach. One is the long time it is taking for his appeal to be heard, and the second is related to the fact that five of his co-defendants have now been released," Straw said.

Straw repeated his government's stand on condemning cross-border terrorism in South Asia.

When asked whether the British government saw Pakistan's direct involvement in encouraging insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir, he said: "Surely Pakistan has a position on Kashmir, which is well known. But we see no purpose in violence in Kashmir. The solution to the problem has to be a peaceful one. In the long run, the situation there can only be resolved by negotiations between India and Pakistan."

The British home secretary expressed his government's concern over the growing incidents of communal violence in India. "The intention behind my raising communal problems with various ministers was to know the actions the (state) governments were taking in order to reduce the communal tension," he said.

When asked whether the UK's Labour Party government agreed with a US Congress report that said the Bharatiya Janata Party had direct links with Hindu fundamentalists, Straw said: "The BJP is heading an elected government of the Republic of India. We show respect to elected governments in democracies. That's our position and I believe that's the position of the US as well."

Straw made it subtly clear that he was not visiting Pakistan.

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