All men are equal in the eyes of the law...

…but are some more equal than others?

Yesterday Richard Munisamy, Director of WeLuvMu, made a statement to CCID complaining that Jameel Peerally had used foul language over the telephone. You may recall that Rama Sithanen, after he had openly criticised his party’s leader, was arrested for questioning for a similar offence. Moreover, Richard complained that Jameel had threatened his life/safety in a Facebook message. In the real world, such an offence of intent is only one small step removed from actually committing it.

But this is Mauritius isn’t it? A fantasy island, where the police are guided by special regulations defining what is an arrestable offence. Has anyone actually seen a copy? Or are decisions about “sensitive” arrests made at whim of the Minister for Home Affairs? If so, would this not make a Farce of the Mission Statement of the Force:

We, in the Mauritius Police Force, have taken the Oath of Allegiance to the country and the public to faithfully execute and perform all duties incumbent on us under any office in the Force to which we may be appointed, in the preservation of peace and the prevention and detection of all offences and all other duties as required of us by Law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will. We apply the Law firmly but fairly and politely, and we must be seen to do so…

So the challenge to the police is laid down. If it was fair for you to arrest Rama Sithanen for questioning, then surely you have no choice but to follow suit with Jameel Peerally? Or will his father, who seems to enjoy certain privileges due to his relationship to the Labour party, such as being appointed Chairman of the Board of the Road Development Authority, intercede on his behalf? [Note, we are NOT insinuating that his father is not the person best qualified for the role. Heaven forbid!]

Now, if some people are treated more equally in the eyes of the law, what does this imply? Is it not a violation of the first section of the Constitution?

The State, Mauritius, shall be a sovereign democratic State which shall be known as the Republic of Mauritius.

The phrase “sovereign democratic” means “ruled by laws established by the will of the people”. Conversely if a state is ruled by the whim of its Prime Minister then it has become a dictatorship or an empire ruled by the word of its emperor. We leave it for you to judge which description is more appropriate for our beloved nation. Or perhaps his control is not yet complete? Rest assured, if we believed that a real plot was being hatched, WeLuvMu would declare Holy War on the such treachery in defence of the Republic and our Human Rights as enshrined in the Constitution.

(Good grief this really does seem to parallel the plot from Starwars Episode I – as we “joked” earlier this month. Don’t you think? Perhaps Vanna Bonta was right: there is more truth in comedy than in tragedy!

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