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Heart-breaking news: The Pioneer
New Delhi, Feb 02: The findings of the Lord Hutton judicial enquiry into the controversial death of British Government scientist David Kelly has astonished not just people in Britain but across the world.
New Delhi, Feb 02: The findings of the Lord Hutton judicial enquiry into the controversial death of British Government scientist David Kelly has astonished not just people in Britain but across the world. The distinguished judge has not only completely absolved the Tony Blair Government despite the dubious manner in which it acted before and after Kelly's death, he has also pointed a finger at the BBC whose reporter Andrew Gilligan had dared to expose the pressure put on the Government scientist by bigwigs in the Blair regime to buttress the latter's case for the war on Iraq.
In India, where several generations have been groomed on lofty British liberal traditions of Government accountability and a free media, the public outrage caused by the Hutton report in the United Kingdom has a particular resonance. More than ever before, the British role model already tarnished over the years appears to be a mockery of its past reputation. Indeed, there is a question mark over even the timing of the leaked report when Prime Minister Blair's popularity keeps on slipping even amongst his own party MPs with elections fast approaching. Editorial comment in several British dailies suggesting that the Hutton report was an establishment whitewash with political undertones does have some justification.
The sad thing is that after the Hutton report, a beleaguered Prime Minister and his aides who have been in the dock over the past many months for leading a nation into war on fabricated excuses, have acquired a halo almost overnight. It is the BBC that is now on trial. Already the two top executives of the reputed public service broadcaster have had to resign in ignominy. The BBC's reputation of professionalism built over the years despite Government sponsorship now lies in tatters, with Lord Hutton choosing to lambast the media organisation on technicalities such as insufficient editorial supervision and the lack of a proper response mechanism to complaints against its stories.
Clearly, serious questions need to be asked about a whole range of issues including the supposed impartiality of judicial enquiries, transparency of a democratically elected Government and media initiatives in public interest. While the exact reasons for the Government scientist's death may never be known, the implications of the Hutton revelations go well beyond the demise of a single individual. It concerns the steady ebb of the democratic process itself in a country that gave it birth.
For instance, despite the mystique about judicial enquiries and commissions, this is yet another example of how often they tend to uphold the letter instead of the spirit of justice. Over the past several months, the perambulations of the Hutton enquiry have, by strange coincidence, carefully kept off areas where the Blair Government was vulnerable, instead of seeking to delve deeper into minute details of BBC's functioning to pick technical fault. The infamous diary entries of Prime Minister Blair's redoubtable media manager Alastair Campbell's memos and diary entries on Kelly have, therefore, been cast aside. On the other hand, the notes of BBC reporter Gilligan and his interaction with his bosses have been held up for relentless examination.
There is also more than a touch of irony to a Labour Government behaving in a manner that tramples on the party's legacy. Not so long ago, such governmental skullduggery would have been the preserve of the Conservatives and the prime target of campaigns by Labour and allied media outfits like The Guardian. Today, The Guardian appears to be on the other side of the fence with its columnists writing lengthy lamentations on the Hutton report.
However, the most important casualty of the Hutton report has been the free media in Britain. There is little doubt that enterprise and initiative to conduct investigations in public interest displayed by individuals or organisations belonging to the media in that country may not be as forthcoming as before. What is particularly unfortunate is that the BBC that showed remarkable courage in defying the Government despite its umbilical link has come away with such a bloody nose from its first real test of autonomy. Given the present disarray in the public service broadcaster, it may not be that great an idea any longer for Prasar Bharti to see the BBC as a role model.
It is ludicrous that those in the British establishment today who are patting themselves on the back and pointing a finger at the BBC are forgetting the real issue in question. The main thrust of the BBC report was a damaging indictment of the Blair Government of trying desperate measures to beef up its case that the Saddam regime in Iraq had to be toppled because of the imminent danger (45 minutes, according to the infamous British Intelligence report) its weapons of mass destruction posed to the free world. Long after Saddam has been toppled and even incarcerated, there is not a shred of evidence pointing at the existence of these lethal weapons. Regardless of who was actually to blame for the scientist's death, the fact of the matter is that today it was the British Government that was lying about proof of Saddam's arsenal and the BBC was indeed on the correct trail.
Ultimately, the fig leaf provided by the Hutton report may not be enough to cover Prime Minister Blair and his Government. It does not appear to have significantly changed public opinion in Britain about the present regime and the games it played with the people before the Iraq war. Opinion polls after the report had been leaked indicate that the British Prime Minister continues to be on slippery ground and the entire cover-up operation could well boomerang in the end.
As for the impact of Lord Hutton's views on who was right and wrong in India, it will no doubt further diminish the stature of Britain in a country that has modelled its modern image on the values cherished by its colonial master. Despite the best efforts of the competent and affable diplomats sent here from London, Indo-British ties, which are otherwise doing fine, will lack even less this vital ingredient which made Britain a very special country for Indians even after it lost its empire. There will be even less reason today to learn from a country whose once hallowed values and institutions had taught us so much in the past.
The sad thing is that after the Hutton report, a beleaguered Prime Minister and his aides who have been in the dock over the past many months for leading a nation into war on fabricated excuses, have acquired a halo almost overnight. It is the BBC that is now on trial. Already the two top executives of the reputed public service broadcaster have had to resign in ignominy. The BBC's reputation of professionalism built over the years despite Government sponsorship now lies in tatters, with Lord Hutton choosing to lambast the media organisation on technicalities such as insufficient editorial supervision and the lack of a proper response mechanism to complaints against its stories.
Clearly, serious questions need to be asked about a whole range of issues including the supposed impartiality of judicial enquiries, transparency of a democratically elected Government and media initiatives in public interest. While the exact reasons for the Government scientist's death may never be known, the implications of the Hutton revelations go well beyond the demise of a single individual. It concerns the steady ebb of the democratic process itself in a country that gave it birth.
For instance, despite the mystique about judicial enquiries and commissions, this is yet another example of how often they tend to uphold the letter instead of the spirit of justice. Over the past several months, the perambulations of the Hutton enquiry have, by strange coincidence, carefully kept off areas where the Blair Government was vulnerable, instead of seeking to delve deeper into minute details of BBC's functioning to pick technical fault. The infamous diary entries of Prime Minister Blair's redoubtable media manager Alastair Campbell's memos and diary entries on Kelly have, therefore, been cast aside. On the other hand, the notes of BBC reporter Gilligan and his interaction with his bosses have been held up for relentless examination.
There is also more than a touch of irony to a Labour Government behaving in a manner that tramples on the party's legacy. Not so long ago, such governmental skullduggery would have been the preserve of the Conservatives and the prime target of campaigns by Labour and allied media outfits like The Guardian. Today, The Guardian appears to be on the other side of the fence with its columnists writing lengthy lamentations on the Hutton report.
However, the most important casualty of the Hutton report has been the free media in Britain. There is little doubt that enterprise and initiative to conduct investigations in public interest displayed by individuals or organisations belonging to the media in that country may not be as forthcoming as before. What is particularly unfortunate is that the BBC that showed remarkable courage in defying the Government despite its umbilical link has come away with such a bloody nose from its first real test of autonomy. Given the present disarray in the public service broadcaster, it may not be that great an idea any longer for Prasar Bharti to see the BBC as a role model.
It is ludicrous that those in the British establishment today who are patting themselves on the back and pointing a finger at the BBC are forgetting the real issue in question. The main thrust of the BBC report was a damaging indictment of the Blair Government of trying desperate measures to beef up its case that the Saddam regime in Iraq had to be toppled because of the imminent danger (45 minutes, according to the infamous British Intelligence report) its weapons of mass destruction posed to the free world. Long after Saddam has been toppled and even incarcerated, there is not a shred of evidence pointing at the existence of these lethal weapons. Regardless of who was actually to blame for the scientist's death, the fact of the matter is that today it was the British Government that was lying about proof of Saddam's arsenal and the BBC was indeed on the correct trail.
Ultimately, the fig leaf provided by the Hutton report may not be enough to cover Prime Minister Blair and his Government. It does not appear to have significantly changed public opinion in Britain about the present regime and the games it played with the people before the Iraq war. Opinion polls after the report had been leaked indicate that the British Prime Minister continues to be on slippery ground and the entire cover-up operation could well boomerang in the end.
As for the impact of Lord Hutton's views on who was right and wrong in India, it will no doubt further diminish the stature of Britain in a country that has modelled its modern image on the values cherished by its colonial master. Despite the best efforts of the competent and affable diplomats sent here from London, Indo-British ties, which are otherwise doing fine, will lack even less this vital ingredient which made Britain a very special country for Indians even after it lost its empire. There will be even less reason today to learn from a country whose once hallowed values and institutions had taught us so much in the past.