Are Torture Commissions The Way To Go? (UPDATED)

There has been alot of discussion amongst those of us involved in the Guantanamo litigation about what the best policy is for unearthing and making public all that has happened with our secret prisons, torture, and other violations of human rights. Many have suggested something styled after the truth and reconciliation commissions and now the International Center for Transitional Justice has completed its year long inquiry and concluded that is the way to go...And the London times jumps in with this piece by Andrew Sullivan.
I am not convinced but perhaps it is a good starting point.
Hats off to Harpers Scott Horton for bringing these to my attention.
Click on the title to read more.

Several people have emailed me to ask why I am not convinced that truth commissions are the way to go. To put it bluntly: why bother if we are not going to use the truth to prosecute our criminals? When someone murders your neighbor you do not ask for a truth commission to look into the murder, you gather the facts and prosecute the individual. We are talking not just about murder but also human rights violations on a massive scale and the shredding of our constitution. If the truth commissions are proposed as a way to gather all of the facts for a future prosecution then I am all for it.... if however, as I suspect, the commissions are the endgame ...then screw it.

Chinese Uighers and the power struggle with the Executive

Click on the title for a good run down on the controversy between the Bush Administration and the Judiciary over the plight of the Uighers... the Uighers are men that have been held at Guantanamo for almost seven years, the government has admitted they are not enemy combatants,the federal court ordered them released to the US but the Bushies have tied up their release claiming they are a threat to us... even if not to the rest of the world....sigh.

An Interrogator speaks out...

A US military interrogator speaks about the "guantanamo method" of interrogation used in Iraq and why it will not and cannot work.
Click on the title to read more.

MORE LINKS FROM OUR CANADIAN FRIEND (updated)

HATS OFF TO KAPTAIN KANADA FOR THE FOLLOWING LINKS:

http://www.kansascity.com/news/world/story/913662.html

http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/early-ruling-on-detainee-process/

http://www.startribune.com/nation/35210944.html

http://www.sltrib.com/ci_11063128

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202426254333&rss=newswire

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/11/30/international/i080519S03.DTL&feed=rss.news

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7757225.stm

(just copy and paste the ones that you can't click on....)
THERE ARE SO MANY MORE THAT HE SENT BUT THIS SHOULD KEEP YOU BUSY FOR NOW.

Op-Ed from Sabin Willett (one of the Uigher attorneys)

Now here is an idea for you... judge the Guantanamo cases by the facts as they are .... not the facts as Mukasey and his idea of a justice department would like them to be.
Click on the title to read the op-ed

Bin Laden's "driver" to be released to Yemen?

Bin Laden driver to be moved from Guantanamo

(CNN) -- The former driver and bodyguard of Osama bin Laden will be moved from the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, on Monday, several U.S. sources told CNN.

Salim Ahmed Hamdan, who has been held at Guantanamo Bay for years, will be moved to his native Yemen to serve the final weeks of his sentence, the sources said.

Hamdan was convicted by a military commission in August of a war crime -- providing material support to al Qaeda -- but was cleared of more serious terrorism conspiracy charges.

He was found guilty of being the terror leader's bodyguard and driver, and of receiving weapons training and transporting and delivering arms. However, the commission rejected charges that Hamdan conspired with others in carrying out al Qaeda attacks, including those of September 11, 2001.

Hamdan received a 66-month prison sentence, which was due to be completed by the end of the year, because he had received credit for time served before being found guilty.

November 23, 2004

It was four years ago today that my client Mr. Al-Ghizzawi was found by the Military's Combat Status Review Tribunal (CSRT) to NOT be an enemy combatant.... Seemed like an appropriate anniversary to file his petition for certiorari before the U.S. Supreme Court. I filed it with the Court Security Office today. When it is cleared for public consumption I will post it here.

NPR's "The Story"

Well it is not everyday I can tell people I was on a radio program with both Obama and Bush but listen yourself.

5 of the 6 Bosnians Ordered to be Released

Judge Leon who has been conducting Habeas hearings in DC just ordered that five of the six Bosnians held at Guantanamo these past 61/2 years must be released. For those not familiar with Judge Leon he is a very conservative Bush appointee and the "justice" department thought it had a friend in him that would just do what they asked. Fortunately he is a Judge first and foremost.
click on the title to read more...

Talking Dog interview with Buz Eisenberg

Habeas counsel Buz Eisenberg has been representing Gitmo clients for more than 4 years.
Click on the title to read another amazing Talking Dog interview and read to the letter at the end and ask yourself this.

Tomorrow on NPR's The Story

On Thursday I will be on NPR's The Story to give the latest on my Guantanamo cases. Click on the title to go to the website and see what time it will be on in your location. In Chicago it will be on WBEZ at 2:00 pm.
I will have a link to the show later this week.

I lOVE GITMO

So what should be done with Guantanamo when Obama closes it, as he promised to do? I am sure there will be many novel ideas but this one is great fun! (be sure to click on the illustrations.)

CLICK ON THE TITLE TO READ MORE

Chief Military Judge Retires Immediately

Judge Ralph Kohlmann had been scheduled to retire in April but I guess he just could not wait... he is out as of yesterday.

Kids at Gitmo

As I reported here last week the Guantanamo Testimonials Project at the Center for the Study of Human rights in America at UC Davis did a study of the governments own records and determined that we were holding more kids at Gitmo then previously admitted. The military has now revised its figures to the number the testimonials project determined to be the correct number.
Click on the title for the AP story (I know I don't like to post AP stories but I am making this exception!).

My letter to the editor to a paper today....

I am surprised to learn that President-elect Obama is seriously considering legislation to create special courts for the men at Guantanamo. I hope Obama, a lawyer himself, will take the time to carefully review the “evidence” against many of the men still being held at that base. At first blush, some of the so called “evidence” might strike the untrained as serious but if Obama reviews the underlying support for that “evidence” he will see that the reason behind many of these detentions is (to quote one of the military tribunal panel members) “garbage.” I represent two of the men at Guantanamo and I have looked at what is supposed to be the secret evidence against my clients. I can tell you that there is a reason they keep this information secret and it is not about “national security”, this is about national embarrassment. In fact, calling this “garbage” is, in my view, a gross understatement. Couple this with the resignations of six of the prosecutors in the Military Commission system and it should be clear that there are serious problems underlying the cases. It is appalling that these men have sat at Guantanamo for almost seven years with no charges against them and no judicial review of the evidence. If Obama follows through with his trial balloon and sets up yet another system to try these men my clients will look at another year or more before they get the fair hearing that they so desperately need. The US Supreme Court said in June that these men have waited long enough for their hearings. I pray that Obama will heed the call of the Supreme Court and let our justice system, which has worked just fine for over two centuries, do its job.

H. Candace Gorman

Attorney at Law