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Originally Posted by Mr Mephisto
Once again, no one here said they did.
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Kerry did.
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WRONG. Executing prisoners, and that is what he was, IS most definitely, categorically, abosolutely a war crime. Feel free to check the Geneva Conventions, especially the Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War. [Adopted on 12 August 1949 by the Diplomatic Conference for the Establishment of
International Conventions for the Protection of Victims of War, held in Geneva from 21 April to 12 August, 1949. Entry into force 21 October 1950]
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Who said he was a prisoner of war? What exactly did he do to remove himself from the status of unlawful combatant/spy (who can be summarily executed) and put him into the status of POW? Was he wearing insignia recognizable at a distance? If not, what moved him into POW status?
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Let me also quote from the US Military book Law at War - Vietnam 1964 to 1973
"As indigenous offenders, the Viet Cong did not technically merit prisoner of war status, although they were entitled to humane treatment under Article 3, Geneva Prisoner of War Conventions. Under Article 12, the United States retained responsibility for treatment of its captives in accordance with the Geneva Conventions even after transfer of the captives to the South Vietnamese. At the same time, the United States was concerned that Americans held captive in North and South Vietnam receive humane treatment and be accorded the full benefits and protection of prisoners of war.
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Objection, relevance. Are you suggesting that the shooter was American, or in American custody? It's interesting to note, however, that the first the manual does indeed say that they were not POWs, and he was humanely treated, he was humanely shot in the head, causing almost instantaneous death. While not as humane as a lethal injection, execution by musketry is still legal in parts of the US (namely Utah), and it hasn't been ruled to be cruel or unusual punishment.
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He was purportedly a Viet Cong officer. They didn't wear uniforms.
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PURPORTEDLY?!??!? his widow admits he was VC. And not wearing uniforms is why they were not classified as POWS but rather as unlawful combatants.
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It is reported that he did claim POW status before he was shot.
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I can claim to be the Queen of the MayDay, that doesn't make it so. I'm sure he also claimed to be innocent, like most convicts do.
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Either way, the fact that he was a PRISONER means it was a crime.
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No, it doesn't. People in his situation can indeed be executed, just like spies can be executed.
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And finally, on pages 76, 77 and 77 of the same book (did I mention it was published by the US Military and is on their web page), there is the following section.
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Yup, you sure did. You just didn't mention why a US government policy would apply to a Lt. Col of the ARVN, which was part of a sovereign nation OTHER than the US, and which was NOT under US command or the UCMJ. He was captured, interrogated, passed up the chain of command to somebody who had the legal authority to judge him (in effect, a summary courts martial) and then execute him.