Will 'greens' in the future be demanding life sentences for littering?

SIRC – Media Watch 30-04-99

Eco-Jihad?

Under consideration in the United Arab Emirates this week is the introduction of the death penalty for anyone caught polluting its environment. Details of the proposals, at present are unclear, but one would suspect that the legislation will primarily focus on the practices of sluicing and dumping. Without even getting involved in discussions that attempt to balance ecological damage with human rights violations, the definition of 'environmental pollution' and indeed, 'accidental' are suitably vague enough to potentially offer some serious grounds for concern. We can but hope these extreme forms of environmental protection are not adopted nearer to home. Will 'greens' in the future be demanding life sentences for littering?