Hew Raymond  Griffiths, a British national living in the Australian city of Bateau Bay, after spending almost four years in prison in his native country and after being extradited to the USA, is now about  to face a process and eventually a conviction.

The accusation is infringement of the law on copyright. Being processed in the USA, Mr. Griffiths risks up to 10 years in prison and a half- million-dollars fine.

Griffiths was arrested in 2003 because of a warrant emitted by Australian institutions under the request of the American Department of Justice.

The news has been booed by the blogosphere and harshly criticized by magazines that deploy the intromission of US Government in the Australian System of Justice.

Specifically, ITwire  says:

“Griffiths' case is yet another example of the Australian government kowtowing to the United States and putting US interests before the rights of Australians.”

The magazine get on comparing this case with the one of Mr. David Hick, an Australian citizen who is now detained at Guantanamo because he admitted to have supported terrorism:

“The Australian government justified leaving Hicks at the mercy of the so-called US justice system because it said Hicks couldn't be prosecuted under Australian law. There are perfectly good Australian laws in place to charge Griffiths, yet Australia has washed its hands of him and handed him over.”

 According to the Australian court which approved the extradition of Mr. Griffiths, this conviction has been possible also because of the “Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement (FTA)”, a preferential trade agreement which is very strict about intellectual property protection.

The agreement allows the two countries to extend their jurisdiction beyond national borders, in case of particularly grave cases.  

Griffiths, known by the handle “Bandido,” was leader of the popular crew DrinkOrDie.

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what the helll Written by Guest on 2008-01-29 11:51:12

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