Paying ransoms for hostages.

[Gromit]

After two hostages were killed in Iraq, the Government, and David Milliband in particular are facing criticism.

Other countries pay the abductors and their people are set free. The British refuse to pay and our people die.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-119462 2/As-hostages-bodies-returned-Miliband-admits- We-failed.html

Are the Government right or wrong?

[Androcles]

Who said anything about paying? As I understood it, the people who imprisoned them were after the release of political prisoners over which the government had no control anyway? In which case they were just a bunch of sadistic murderers with no concern over anything other than their own skins and those of their ffriends.

Did they choose Father's day to hnd the bodies over deliberatelu

[paraffin]

If you're not directly affected, then the Govt are right.

If one of your loved ones/friends is involved, human nature dictates that they would conclude that the Govt are wrong.

Yes, pay the ransom and they may free the hostage(s) unharmed. And then the next time they kidnap someone else?
You pay again, and again, and again etc etc etc.

No, don't pay, so the hostage(s) may be killed.

Governments are damned if they do and damned if they don't.

[R1Geezer]

Gromit I can't believe anyone who's IQ is greater than their waist size would ask such a bl00dy stupid question.

Now let me see kidnap people, demand ransom, get money, whoopie, repeat process.

or Kidnap people, no one takes any notice, no point in kdnapping Brits as they won't even talk to us, now let's go kidnap some of those nice Frenchies, their governement has no backbone.

Ok you may lose the early ones but once you start dealing with them you end up with purpetual blackmail.

[Gromit]

R1Geezer

I believe the Government are right.

it is just that the Mail seems to think they are wrong. Milliband might deserve a lot of flack, I think he is hopeless, but he does not deserve criticism for this.

[danchip]

the government is totally right!

MAybe the dead guys should of thought of their families before taking such a risk!

[rov1200]

As they were hijacked in the first place not by al qaeda but by Sadr's mob there was also some complicity by members of Iraq's government the people we went to war for.