Dear Editor,
As part of the heritage month celebrations, Governor Eyre, the British governor who suppressed the Morant Bay riots 150 years ago, will be put on trial. If this trial is supposed to be a fair and accurate representation of what a true trial should be, then I don't see how the organisers will do it.
First of all, Eyre was never put on trial, and I think this was so for a very good reason, which doesn't seem to be obvious to most. However, there are several reasons why this planned trial will be nothing but a circus. Perhaps the main reason is that the context for this trial will be all wrong. The main charge against Eyre is that he committed a massacre of many innocent people. However, we must remember the context of this accusation.
These days, if any disturbance is put down with the loss of many lives, those in charge would be branded criminals. However, 150 years ago, such heavy loss of life in such circumstances wasn't seen as much of a big deal by most. What I am saying is that, if Eyre was put on trial then, the heavy loss of life would not have been a major concern at the time. For this trial, it is the opposite that is going to be true.
Back in Eyre's time, if he was put on trial, he would most likely have been tried by his peers. That is, people who were white and sympathetic to the reasons why he did what he did. As such, he would most likely have been found innocent. With this planned trial, the man is going to be tried by hardened pan-Africanists, Rastafarians and anti-white racists (some posing as credible historians) who are mostly black. It is hard to see how Eyre can be found anything but guilty.
In any case, a verdict will be 'determined' long before the trial, irrespective of any arguments. This alone would make such a trial a sham. People don't seem to understand that sensational trials can never go strictly according to law alone. The outcome of such trials, whether in Eyre's time or today, would be greatly influenced by the prevailing racial, social and political structures.
Indeed, I would venture and say that this is the reason the British Government did not push for Eyre to be tried at the time. The highly charged emotions on both sides at the time would deny Eyre a fair trial either way.
Those who are planning this trial that will become a mockery should learn from the British and let those who died in those riots rest in peace.
Interestingly, notice that despite being the muscle for the force with which Governor Eyre was able to suppress those riots, the Maroons are not being put on trial? Talk about justice being colour blind.
Michael A Dingwall
michael_a_dingwall@hotmail.com
Fair trial impossible for Gov Eyre
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As part of the heritage month celebrations, Governor Eyre, the British governor who suppressed the Morant Bay riots 150 years ago, will be put on trial. If this trial is supposed to be a fair and accurate representation of what a true trial should be, then I don't see how the organisers will do it.
First of all, Eyre was never put on trial, and I think this was so for a very good reason, which doesn't seem to be obvious to most. However, there are several reasons why this planned trial will be nothing but a circus. Perhaps the main reason is that the context for this trial will be all wrong. The main charge against Eyre is that he committed a massacre of many innocent people. However, we must remember the context of this accusation.
These days, if any disturbance is put down with the loss of many lives, those in charge would be branded criminals. However, 150 years ago, such heavy loss of life in such circumstances wasn't seen as much of a big deal by most. What I am saying is that, if Eyre was put on trial then, the heavy loss of life would not have been a major concern at the time. For this trial, it is the opposite that is going to be true.
Back in Eyre's time, if he was put on trial, he would most likely have been tried by his peers. That is, people who were white and sympathetic to the reasons why he did what he did. As such, he would most likely have been found innocent. With this planned trial, the man is going to be tried by hardened pan-Africanists, Rastafarians and anti-white racists (some posing as credible historians) who are mostly black. It is hard to see how Eyre can be found anything but guilty.
In any case, a verdict will be 'determined' long before the trial, irrespective of any arguments. This alone would make such a trial a sham. People don't seem to understand that sensational trials can never go strictly according to law alone. The outcome of such trials, whether in Eyre's time or today, would be greatly influenced by the prevailing racial, social and political structures.
Indeed, I would venture and say that this is the reason the British Government did not push for Eyre to be tried at the time. The highly charged emotions on both sides at the time would deny Eyre a fair trial either way.
Those who are planning this trial that will become a mockery should learn from the British and let those who died in those riots rest in peace.
Interestingly, notice that despite being the muscle for the force with which Governor Eyre was able to suppress those riots, the Maroons are not being put on trial? Talk about justice being colour blind.
Michael A Dingwall
michael_a_dingwall@hotmail.com
Fair trial impossible for Gov Eyre
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