Blair faces torrent of criticism on human rights

"Tony Blair remained defiant last night in the face of a torrent of protests over Britain's human rights record, accusing his critics of having 'the world the wrong way round'.

"The Prime Minister was under pressure over his support for US 'rendition flights', his failure to call openly for the closure of the Guantanamo Bay camp in Cuba, and over draconian anti-terror laws, after damning reports by the Labour-led Commons Foreign Affairs Committee and by Amnesty International. His comments on the state of Iraq came on another day of bloodshed in the country.

"He even appeared out of step with his own Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, who warned his cabinet colleagues that terrorist suspects were entitled to the same legal protections as 'law-abiding citizens'.

"Speaking at the London School of Economics, Lord Goldsmith said: 'Determining if a particular person is, or is not, a terrorist requires more than mere assertion on the part of an authority, however genuine and well-intentioned that authority may be.'"
Independent

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