Thursday, August 25, 2011
The Truth Shall Set You Free??
The Military it seems is always striving to reach a new low so it should be no surprise that they have barred this 19 year veteran from reenlisting for having the nerve to discuss his experiences at Guantanamo with Truthout..... read about it here.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
TWO NEW ARTICLES WORTH READING
First is another good article from Jeff Kaye on water torture and Rumsfeld:
The second is an article in Esquire about the unfortunate Mr. Noor Uthman- AKA ISN 707-a man who pled guilty a month or so ago in the military commission-the only way out of Guantanamo these days.... and is now serving his 34 months for providing meals at a camp unconnected with either the Taliban or al-Qaeda and which closed in 1999 when the camp refused to be connected with Osama Bin Laden. Poor Mr. Uthman, like my client Razak Ali, had the misfortune of being in a guesthouse in Pakistan that was raided in March 2002- and like my client Noor has not been shown to have any connection to any illegal activities that may or may not have been going on upstairs in that house (although the article suggests certain bomb making capabilities were taking place at the house other evidence suggests that nothing was going on at the house.) It is a long article but worth the read.
Friday, August 5, 2011
IACHR URGES UNITED STATES TO CLOSE THE DETENTION FACILITY AT GUANTÁNAMO
Washington, August 2, 2011 –
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) approved a Resolution today regarding the situation of the detainees at the U.S. Naval Base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The resolution urges the State to close the detention facility without delay and to arrange for the trial or release of the detainees.
The Commission again concludes that the failure of the United States to give effect to the Commission’s precautionary measures has resulted in irreparable harm to the fundamental rights of the detainees at Guantanamo Bay.
The United States has recognized the detainees’ right to judicial review of the basis for their ongoing deprivation of liberty. However, the U.S. courts generally defer to the Executive in the course of these reviews, which renders the right illusory.
“Once again, the Commission urges the United States to close the Guantanamo Bay facility without delay and arrange for the trial or release of the detainees,” the Resolution states. It specifies that the trials must be conducted expeditiously, while respecting the defendants’ rights to due process and to all of the judicial guarantees.
The Commission also urges the United States to reveal the identities of those detainees who have been cleared for transfer and to ensure that they and all similarly-situated detainees are afforded an adequate, individualized examination of the factual basis for their transfer to a particular country before an independent and impartial decision-maker.
In its Resolution, the Commission insists on the importance of conducting a visit to the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay and being able to freely interview any person detained there. The U.S. government has invited the IACHR to visit Guantanamo in the past, but it indicated that personal interviews with the detainees would not be permitted, a condition that the Inter-American Commission does not accept.
A principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), the IACHR derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for human rights in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this matter. The Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent their countries of origin or residence.
Useful links:
Resolution 2/11 Regarding the Situation of the Detainees at Guantanamo Bay, United States, Precautionary Measures 259-02
Breaking Hicks.....
For those of you unfamiliar with David Hicks he is an Australian man who was held at guantanamo. The only way he could bust out of the hellhole was to plead guilty to things that were not illegal....a familiar theme for those who have managed to leave Gitmo after being charged in a military commission. David Hicks has written a book. If you are reading this blog from somewhere in the United States I will just tell you now you cannot buy his book in this here land of the free....everywhere else in the fuckin' world the book is available - you cannot even buy the book from Amazon or on your kindle... Anyway, the powers to be in Australia are now trying to take away any profit that he makes from the book and there will be a hearing later this month in the Australian courts....hopefully the Aussie judges have a bit more backbone than the judges in my country that are hearing Gitmo issues.
just sayin.
Read more here.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
A couple of articles and a video to check out....
First there is this excellent article by Jeff Kaye:
http://www.truth-out.org/despite-rumsfeld-denial-evidence-shows-us-military-use-waterboarding-style-torture/1312225772And Time asks this question Was Torture worth it?
the article also highlights the panel discussion that Slate’s Dahlia Lithwick moderated which featured John Yoo; then Attorney General Alberto Gonzales; the head of the American Civil Liberties Union, Anthony Romero; law professor, David Cole; and former New York City and L.A. police chief Bill Bratton.
Click here for the video.....a must see!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
