Searching question

Casual barbarism of US arrest procedure revealed

The details that have emerged of the nature of the detention to which the Indian deputy consul general in New York, Devyani Khobragade, was subjected after her arrest for allegedly defrauding the United States visa authorities are disturbing. It should not, however, be entirely surprising. Ms Khobragade, who enjoys the protections of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, was arrested and handcuffed while dropping her children to school, which outraged many in India, particularly in the foreign policy establishment. Ms Khobragade, while being held for a few hours by the US Marshals in preparation for an appearance before the judge, was reportedly subjected to a "strip search", had a sample of her DNA taken, and was put into a lock-up that contained "common criminals".

Sadly, the distressing way in which the US treated Ms Khobragade appears to be standard procedure in that country. The US has constructed a system that gives officials very little leeway when dealing with accused felons. It has long been argued by US activists and liberals that the invasiveness involved in a strip search means it should not be automatic for any accused. But, after a long and protracted court battle, even the US Supreme Court has upheld the practice. Ms Khobragade and the Indian authorities are right to view this as unnecessarily humiliating in the absence of any clear and present threat. Sadly, it is not a practice reserved for rare occasions, as it should be. The US should see outrage in India as a just reflection of an arrest procedure that excessively dehumanises the accused. This is not to say, of course, that India is free of stain in that respect. Also, the Indian government, if its protests are to be taken seriously, should also clarify if it took appropriate steps to avoid this situation when it was first made aware of the issue, reportedly several months ago.

The US system allows little laxity or discretion, a lack visible in this instance. After Ms Khobragade was strip-searched, as is the regular practice by US marshals, she was, according to the US authorities, treated in the normal manner for someone appearing shortly before a magistrate - put in a holding cell with other women due to appear. Some of those with her may have been drug addicts, or "common criminals". The Vienna Convention may not explicitly prohibit a host country from such treatment in the case of a "grave" crime, which the US argues visa fraud is. But it is questionable whether the US criminal justice system's fixity of procedure, which relies on the humiliation of an arrestee, does not automatically violate the spirit of the convention, which enjoins "respect" due "by reason of an official position" in the case of criminal proceedings against a consular officer. For an egalitarian society like the US, treatment of all arrestees alike may be viewed as sufficient respect. But the casual barbarism of standard procedure means that they are, in fact, treated with equal disrespect. The US' dehumanisation of its prisoners and what is seen as a lack of respect for the spirit of the Vienna Convention have helped create an unneeded international incident.