Justice and the Poor

Will the revamped judiciary in Pakistan dispense justice? And how?

Traditionally, the goddess of law is neither blind nor deaf. It goes easy on the rich and harder on the poor.

Unless the disenfranchised get justice, and soon and fairly, they will continue to look for the short cuts. Welcome Kalashnikov culture.

Look at the men and women languishing in jails for petty crimes, for their inability to post meagre bonds, for not affording representation.

In the great U.S. it is the same. If you rob billions, you are lightly reprimanded. Read the linked article. If you smoke crack, or peddle hash you are incarcerated for far longer.

Bankers each get 37 months in Enron case By JUAN A. LOZANO

HOUSTON (AP) -- Three former British bankers who pleaded guilty for their roles in a fraudulent scheme with former Enron Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow were each sentenced Friday to three years and one month in prison.

The 37-month sentences for David Bermingham, Giles Darby and Gary Mulgrew matched federal prosecutors' recommendation to U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein Jr.

In November, the three defendants each pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud as part of a plea agreement after initially saying they did not collude with Fastow in a secret financial scam in 2000 to enrich themselves at their employer's expense.

Enron, once the nation's seventh-largest company, crumbled into bankruptcy in December 2001 after years of accounting tricks could no longer hide billions in debt or make failing ventures appear profitable. The collapse wiped out thousands of jobs, more than $60 billion in market value and more than $2 billion in pension plans.