The White House has characterized the prisoners kept at Guantánamo Bay as being "dangerous terrorists", and has thus justified their continual detention and abuse. However, a report by lawyers representing two Guantánamo detainees shows how 55 percent of the detainees haven't been found to have committed any hostile acts against the U.S. or its allies. Only 8 percent were characterized as al Qaeda fighters and 86 percent were handed over by Afghan forces or Pakistanis at a time when the United States was offering financial bounties for suspected enemies.
Meanwhile a British high court judge granted three British residents detained by the United States at Guantanamo Bay permission to seek a court order requiring the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, to petition for their release. "America's idea of what is torture is not the same as ours and does not appear to coincide with that of most civilised nations," said justice Collins
Calls to close the Guantánamo Bay prison have multiplied since UN experts issued a report last week concluding that the United States was violating prisoners' fundamental human rights and called on the US to close the prison. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan told reporters "I think sooner or later there will be a need to close Guantanamo. I think it will be up to the government to decide, and hopefully to do it as soon as possible." The British, German and French ambassadors have also been vocal in expressing their concerns about Guantánamo. According to the French Ambassador to the US: "Guantanamo is an embarrassment, and so it has to be solved one way or the other. It's necessary to have the people in Guantanamo get a fair trial." Similar feelings were expressed by Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Chilean President Lagos and German Chancellor Angela Merkel who said "An institution like Guantanamo cannot and should not exist in the longer term. Different ways and means must be found". Editorials on newspapers around the world are making similar calls.
Posted by marga at February 20, 2006 11:35 AM | TrackBack