"We Have The Capacity To Do Justice"

Jackson Statement On Photos Of Saddam Hussein’s Sons

Congressmen Jesse L. Jackson, Jr., released the following statement reacting to the release today of pictures of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein’s dead sons Uday and Qusay:

"The United States led the war in Iraq saying we wanted to rid the world of a dictator who was a threat to our safety and that of his neighbors, as well as bring freedom and democracy to Iraqis who had suffered under Saddam Hussein’s brutal regime. We continue to spend scores of American lives in that endeavor, as well as millions of dollars. But with today’s release of the photos of Uday and Qusay Hussein’s dead bodies, we showed the world our capacity to match Saddam’s brutality. Now as we continue to pursue him and the rest of his henchmen, let us show that we have the capacity to follow the law. Let us show that we have the capacity to do justice.

"We are a nation of laws, and our faith in the law is one of the things that sets us apart from many other nations. A wild west ‘wanted: dead or alive’ pursuit of those who promote evil in the world should be beneath us. Saddam’s sons were entitled to their day in court, or at least given every possible, unquestionable opportunity to get it. The Iraqi people were entitled to the opportunity to face their tormenters as they stood in the stark spotlight of justice. Saddam Hussein must have the same.

"We should not encourage slaughter as a practice of the world’s most sophisticated military. We should not encourage abandoning due process because an informant claims a bounty. We should not become those who upend the law while claiming to uphold it. That is beneath every thing this nation stands for, and disregards the sacrifice we continue to ask our men and women in uniform to risk their lives for."