Using The Holocaust To Defend Polanski

Polanski's defenders have solicited sympathy for the director by noting the length of time since his crime (32 years) and even his Holocaust survival. Good Lord. Norm Geras contends they are mutually exclusive:

As a genocide, the Holocaust was a colossal, a continent-wide, crime against humanity, as well as being composed of countless localized crimes against humanity. There is no statute of limitations for crimes against humanity. (See this Convention.) That is because of their gravity. For the same reason, in most national jurisdictions the provision for statutory limitation does not normally cover grave crimes against the person. Reference to Polanski's being a Holocaust survivor should therefore remind us that, whatever other arguments there may be against extraditing him, the fact that his offence was committed long ago isn't one of them - unless raping a child is thought not to be a serious offence.