BLANKET FORGIVENESS OFFENSIVE: WALE

By Editor's Desk

Deputy Opposition Leader, Mathew Wale says granting of blanket forgiveness to perpetrators in the ethnic conflict will be meaningless and also highly disrespectful and offensive to the victims.

Mr Wale was responding to the views expressed in the Letters to the Editor column in the Solomon Star on statements he made at a recent media forum regarding the NCRA Government’s proposed Forgiveness Bill.

He said his statement that the government’s announced policy to pass a forgiveness bill is misguided was made on the following bases:

• Solomon Islanders appreciate the achievement of the cessation of active hostilities under the Townsville Peace Agreement (TPA). Unfortunately, that was the only achievement of the TPA. Militants continued to hold onto weapons and were terrorizing ordinary Solomon Islanders until RAMSI landed. The TPA was breached by all stakeholders, including the former militia groups.

• The government then proceeded to enact amnesty legislation which specifically excluded human rights violations, murder, rape (serious offences) from eligibility for amnesty. And for an offender to receive amnesty he/she still needs to plead for it – in other words, it too is conditional on disclosure of truth. This seemed to have been understood by the lead negotiators of the TPA. So it is consistent with the spirit of the TPA.

• the Truth & Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was enacted to focus on the plight of victims of the conflict who have for the most part been neglected throughout the peace process because those who had the guns and power had the ascendancy then and were almost exclusively the focus of the peace process.

• The TRC Act is clear that any and all evidence presented by any witness cannot be admitted in any criminal proceedings against such a person. Therefore, it is in the interest of all perpetrators/offenders to come clean and tell all. If they give full and truthful disclosure then none of that evidence will ever be used against them. This, in effect, is the forgiveness that both the state and society will grant to offenders. It is forgiveness conditioned on full and truthful disclosures.

• It is important to understand that forgiveness by its very meaning is specific to a person or group of identified persons for specific wrongs. It is therefore essential that the offences and the identity of the persons seeking forgiveness are disclosed. There is no such thing as “blanket” forgiveness. If there is, it cannot be called forgiveness. The one forgiving must know who to forgive and for what wrongs. There is something dehumanizing about “blanket” forgiveness, as it assumes no human beings were involved. On the other hand, the one requiring forgiveness ought to seek and obtain it from specifically identified persons. This is simply because crimes/offences were committed by identified persons against specific persons.

• The role of the State, of course, in perpetrating any offences must also be addressed. And even in this, specific persons would have given decisions, directions, and commands that resulted in offences committed in the name of the State against specific persons. The State, per se, therefore cannot grant “blanket” forgiveness for all offences. If the State were to grant such “blanket” forgiveness”, it would be meaningless and it would be highly disrespectful and offensive to victims. Further, it would only serve to postpone further conflict as victims and their families will never find healing and closure from any “blanket” forgiveness. Try putting ourselves in the victims’ shoes, who desperately want healing and closure.

The Deputy Opposition Leader said further, the announcement is likely to have the adverse effect of discouraging some people who would otherwise likely appear before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission as they will now prefer to wait for just such “blanket” forgiveness.

He said these are very foundational issues for the country and thus it must resist the temptation to pick easy options that may seem right for a few but only lead to more problems later on.