Australia on Thursday apologized to Indian doctor Mohammad Haneef for wrongly detaining him on terror charges three years back, saying it was a mistake and hoped that the compensation paid to him will mark the end of an “unfortunate chapter”.
For the full report in the ToI, click here
There have been enough and more mistakes (as also blatant wrongs) committed by the Indian government on its own citizens, as well as on foreigners, for example this one (something that happened in our own city). Has anybody ever managed to get any kind of a compensation from our governments, or even a simple apology, if not atleast an admission of a mistake? I am not quite aware of any. And, what does that say of our governments?
Muralidhar Rao
Comments
long way to go
The key here is a transparent process. Australia does have that. And the exoneration of Haneef raises other questions. Would the justice system here have been as swift and efficient as Canberra? And would he, upon release, have received compensation? The answer to both must be no. So next time we protest inhuman treatment of Indians in other countries, we should also take a closer look at how we treat our own.
For the full editorial in the New Indian Express, click here.
Indeed, we have a long way to go.