24 November to 1 December
Compensation for the victims of terror: how can justice be served?
On October 12th 2002 a nightclub in Bali was targeted by terrorists. 202 people died. The execution of the bombers fired up strong reactions, including violent demonstrations and scuffles with police, at their funerals. The potential for escalation into more sinister retaliation has led to enhanced security in the region, prompting calls for compensation from survivors, and from families of Britons killed in the attack.
Neither the British citizens affected by the Bali bombing, nor those harmed in 2005 in Sharm el Sheikh and Ankara in 2004, received compensation from our government, because there is no scheme to compensate Britons affected by overseas terrorism. By contrast, compensation was paid to everyone injured in the London 7/7 bombings, regardless of nationality. TROMBONES, an organization that fights for those whose relatives have been murdered overseas, believes that:
It cannot be right to be abandoned by your country once you leave its shores. These people are innocent victims of terrorism just like those in London and deserve our compassion and support.
Compensation paid to victims of 7/7 recognises that they were harmed on British soil. Is justice served by withholding compensation from British citizens who are harmed in terrorist attacks in other countries?
Stephen McArdle is a 3rd Year undergraduate student in the School of Applied Global Ethics, who recently engaged in the Leeds Met volunteering project helping to develop The Abraham Path, in order to fulfil the requirements of SAGE's innovative volunteering module, undertaken by all of the School's undergraduates.