Law Changed To Prevent Popes Arrest!

The head of the worldwide Catholic Church’s forthcoming visit to the UK in September has already raised a large amount of controversy. Now according to Sky News the UK Government is trying to change laws that will prevent the Pope from being arrested here!

According to the Sky News website it is understood that Whitehall officials have been “seriously concerned” that campaigners would use international criminal rules to try to detain the Pontiff while he’s here in the UK.

It’s claimed that Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson QC are among campaigners who’ve been looking at the various options for bringing a private prosecution in relation to the Pope’s alleged cover up of a multitude of sexual abuse cases within the Catholic Church.

The justice secretary Ken Clarke has proposed changes to the rules on laws that allows individuals to be prosecuted in the UK for serious offences such as war crimes, crimes against humanity and torture even if they were carried out abroad.

The changes, if they are passed would take away power from the courts and hand it to politicians, who would under no circumstances allow the Pope to be arrested. Conservative ministers claim current rules are open to abuse because the evidence required to get a warrant is far below the threshold that would be needed to bring a prosecution.

The state visit this September will be the first visit by a Pope to the UK since 1982 and already scores of protests have already been arranged and organised. Veteran gay and human rights campaigner told the UK’s Pink Paper the timing of these new proposals seemed very targeted, stating: “This looks like a deliberate attempt to prevent the issuing of an arrest warrant against the Pope during his State Visit to the UK. The government clearly fears that a child sex abuse victim may seek to arrest and prosecute Benedict XVI.”

Jason Shaw

UK Correspondent

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