The Wizard-Worlds struggle in the Post-War-World of Harry Potter

Grandioser Artikel auf Foreign Policy über die Welt Harry Potters, nun, nachdem der Kampf mit den Todessern und Voldemort vorbei ist: Die Post-Conflict-Welt von Harry Potter. Fantastisch, what a Read!

Members of Voldemort’s inner circle and others guilty of the worst crimes — the unforgivable curses of killing (“Avada Kedavra”), torture (“Crucio”), and mind control (“Imperio”) — should be prosecuted before a court of law. We should reject calls by Order of the Phoenix hard-liners like Joe Lieberbottom, John “Mad Eye” McCain, and Lindsey Gramger to instead detain them without charge as “unlawful enemy spell-casters” for as long as the “war” against dark magic continues (though all three men deserve our thanks for their early warnings about the Dark Lord’s return).

A more difficult dilemma arises with respect to the thousands of other wizards and witches who aided the Dark Lord’s cause in less obvious ways. We cannot sweep their complicity under an invisibility cloak. At the same time, it would be impractical and unwise to prosecute all of them. For every wizard who willingly committed crimes for the Death Eaters, another was blackmailed, threatened, or coerced while under the Imperius Curse. Some actively participated in hostilities against other wizards and Muggles; others merely provided financing or shelter. A campaign to punish everyone would get out of hand, creating a climate of suspicion and score-settling in which innocents are snared. The last thing the wizarding world needs is a witch hunt.

A legitimate process must hold the victors to account as well. Remember, under the ruthless Barty Crouch, the Ministry of Magic’s Department of Magical Law Enforcement was itself formally authorized to use unforgivable curses, including torture, against suspected Death Eaters, and innocent suspects were imprisoned after what were essentially show trials. When the ministry came under Voldemort’s sway, how many of its employees went along with the abuses it committed? What about the controversial decisions made by those who are widely seen as heroes, like Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore — for, say, his use of child soldiers? What of Harry Potter himself, who once used the torture curse?

Post-Conflict Potter – Voldemort’s dead, but the struggle’s not over. How Harry Potter and the magical world of J.K. Rowling might begin the long process of reconciliation and reform. (via MeFi)