Douglas Unwin's letter, 'Alien laws put us all in danger' (March 10), is so wrong.
The whole concept of human rights was put forward not by an alien but by an Englishman, Thomas Paine in 1791.
Mr Unwin is also totally confused in his account of the human rights legislation and your picture of the World Trade Centre was totally out of context.
It is possible to have a sound policy to protect us without resorting to the new, draconian laws.
It seems Mr Unwin's knowledge of the history of post-war Europe is minimal.
It was Sir Winston Churchill who bought about the European Convention on Human Rights and the foundation of the Council of Europe which brought nations together to stop atrocities and acts of cruelty.
This Council of Europe is, and always has been, separate from the European Union and has its own Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Our country has respected these rights for about 50 years; the only aspect that was changed by our own Human Rights Act of 1998 is that it gives UK citizens the right to enforce these fundamental rights of freedom in our own courts.
Richard Whiting,
Redman Close,
York.
Updated: 10:22 Tuesday, March 15, 2005
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