Three years into the Obama administration, Guantanamo is still very much in business, guys, in case you forgot. An excerpt from The Independent, but do go read the whole article:
On the day he marks 10 years locked inside the world's most notorious prison without having been charged with an offence, the last UK resident in Guantanamo Bay pleads with his captors: "Please torture me in the old way . . . . Here they destroy people mentally and physically without leaving marks."Ten years in prison, not seeing his family, tortured and put in solitary confinement - and has never been charged with anything, never been given a trial: all this is being done in YOUR NAME and on your behalf, my fellow Americans.
Speaking from his cell through letters and comments published for the first time in The Independent today, Shaker Aamer, who has never stood trial, reveals the torment of his captivity and removal from his family. Yesterday a senior British source close to the talks admitted that Mr Aamer's detention was "unconscionable". His plight was raised most recently with the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week.
Fears are growing for the welfare of Mr Aamer, from south London, who is now 45 and has a wife and four children. He has never met his youngest son. His lawyers are particularly concerned by the deterioration of his mental and physical state, which Mr Aamer describes vividly in his letters. He has lost 40 per cent of his body weight and is suffering from health problems, aggravated by long periods in solitary confinement. . . .
A British resident, born in Saudi Arabia, Mr Aamer had indefinite leave to remain in the UK when he was reportedly sold to the US in 2001 by Afghan villagers for $5,000. He claims he was helping to build a school. The US claims he was fighting with the Taliban.
Do you give a damn?
Do you think it can't happen to you?
Somebody posted this comment on another blog:
Why am I supposed to care about the detainees in Gitmo? People get hacked to death by machete every day all over Africa. Nobody says anything. Nobody has ever died in Gitmo. If waterboarding these motherfuckers saves the life of one American, its fine with me.What do you say, my friends?
4 comments:
You are right, of course. Gitmo just plain goes in the face of who we want to be as Americans. It is clearly unjust. If this is the only way to defend ourselves against terrorists, we've already lost the war.
I posted once that I believe 9/11 showed us our best and our worst, and I can't help but think that the situation at Gitmo is part of our worst.
Don't think for a moment that I don't believe we should protect ourselves, it just seems like so much of what we've done hasn't actually resulted in real protection.
I fully agree. Keeping that prison open is a disgrace. And a disgrace it is, too, that Obama does so to mollify the Reps!
NOt only did Obama not close it as promised, he has expanded it, signed that Horrible Bill that even for Americans suspends the BIll of rights based on suspicion,and Just spent millions on a NEW SOCCER FIELD. SO I guess it stays
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