Further Calls for the Closure of Guantánamo from the United Nations and the European Parliament

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Further Calls for the Closure of Guantánamo from the United Nations and the European Parliament

[image error]Since the prison-wide hunger strike at Guantánamo began, four months ago, it has been reassuring to see international organizations, the mainstream media and nearly a million members of the public (through various petitions) queuing up to criticize President Obama, and to urge him to address the reasons for the hunger strike, to resume the release of prisoners — especially of the 86 men (out of 166 in total), who were cleared for release by an inter-agency task force he established in 2009, and to revive his long-abandoned promise to close the prison once and for all.

It took the desperation of the prisoners to reach this point, even though their abandonment by all three branches of the US government has been evident since 2010, when President Obama failed to fulfill his promise to close the prison within a year, when Congress ramped up its opposition to the President’s plans, and when judges in the court of appeals in Washington D.C. passed rulings that prevented any prisoner from being released through the courts, by rewriting the rules governing their habeas corpus petitions, and ordering the judges examining their habeas petitions to regard every claim put forward by the government — however ludicrous — as accurate.

Once the news of the hunger strike began to seep out of Guantánamo, the pressure on President Obama led to him finally addressing the problems highlighted by the many critics of his inaction, first in a news conference at the White House, and then, on May 23, in a major speech on national security issues at the National Defense University, in which he said, “I am appointing a new, senior envoy at the State Department and Defense Department whose sole responsibility will be to achieve the transfer of detainees to third countries. I am lifting the moratorium on detainee transfers to Yemen, so we can review them on a case by case basis. To the greatest extent possible, we will transfer detainees who have been cleared to go to other countries.”

No action has yet taken place to demonstrate that the President has any sense of urgency when it comes to fulfilling his promises, and it is crucial, therefore, that pressure continues to be exerted.

On May 27, Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, followed up on her criticism of the Obama administration in April (which I wrote about here), when she said that the prison at Guantánamo Bay was in “clear breach of international law,” by discussing Guantánamo in her Opening Statement at the 23rd session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva. After referring to “the objective of the global struggle against terrorism” as being “the defence of the rule of law and a society characterized by values of freedom, equality, dignity and justice,” she complained that, “time and again, my Office has received allegations of very grave violations of human rights that have taken place in the context of counter-terrorist and counter-insurgency operations. Such practices are self-defeating. Measures that violate human rights do not uproot terrorism: they nurture it.”

She then explained:

The United States’ failure to shut down the Guantánamo detention centre has been an example of the struggle against terrorism failing to uphold human rights, among them the right to a fair trial. Allegedly, more than half of the 166 detainees still being held in detention have been cleared for transfer to either home countries or third countries for resettlement, yet they remain in detention at Guantánamo Bay. Others reportedly have been designated for indefinite detention.

The continuing indefinite detention of many of these individuals amounts to arbitrary detention, in breach of international law, and the injustice embodied in this detention centre has become an ideal recruitment tool for terrorists. I have repeatedly urged the Government of the United States of America to close Guantánamo Bay in compliance with its obligations under international human rights law. I therefore acknowledge President Obama’s statement last Thursday outlining practical steps towards closing the detention facility, such as the lifting of the moratorium on transferring relevant detainees to Yemen. I encourage the United States to ensure that all such measures are carried out in compliance with its obligations under international human rights law. In the meantime, so long as Guantánamo remains open, the authorities must make every effort to ensure full respect for the human rights of detainees, including those who choose to go on hunger strike.

Another organization criticizing President Obama for failing to fulfill his promise to close Guantánamo is the European Parliament. On May 22, the day before President Obama delivered his major speech on national security, I posted the text of a European Parliament resolution on Guantánamo that was due to be debated just hours before President Obama’s speech. The text adopted by the European Parliament after the various member countries debated the topic is quite different from the version I posted two weeks ago, so I’m posting that below.

My friend Anna, who managed to locate it on the European Parliament’s website, sent me the link and noted that, although it was of course good news that the resolution was adopted, “unfortunately quite a few points have been deleted, such as (among others) European countries accepting released prisoners.” This was something I had noted in the original, and I am sorry to see it removed, as countries are still needed to take cleared prisoners who can’t be safely repatriated, but I understand that it was not something that all member states were interested in promising.

I do, however, hope that some member states are interested in offering homes to some of these men — the last three Uighurs, for example, as well as four Syrians, and probably a handful of others.

For now, however, it is at least reassuring that the European Parliament expressed “its regret that the commitment of the US President to close Guantánamo by January 2010 has not yet been implemented,” and reiterated its call for the US “to close Guantánamo,” and “to prohibit in any circumstances the use of torture, ill-treatment and indefinite detention without trial.”

Below is the full text of the resolution that was adopted on May 23:

European Parliament resolution of 23 May 2013 on Guantánamo: hunger strike by prisoners (2013/2654(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to its previous resolutions on Guantánamo,

– having regard to its resolution of 18 April 2012 on the Annual Report on Human Rights in the World and the European Union’s policy on the matter, including implications for the EU’s strategic human rights policy,

– having regard to the international, European and national instruments on human rights and fundamental freedoms and on the prohibition of arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances and torture, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 16 December 1966 and the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment of 10 December 1984 and the relevant protocols thereto,

– having regard to the Joint Statement of the European Union and its Member States and the United States of America on the Closure of the Guantánamo Bay Detention Facility and Future Counterterrorism Cooperation, based on Shared Values, International Law, and Respect for the Rule of Law and Human Rights of 15 June 2009,

– having regard to the Statement on the Guantánamo detention regime by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, on 5 April 2013, saying that ‘the continuing indefinite incarceration of many of the detainees amounts to arbitrary detention and is in clear breach of international law’,

– having regard to the principles of the United Nations Charter and to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights,

– having regard to Rule 122 of its Rules of Procedure;

A. whereas a large part of the 166 remaining prisoners at Guantánamo Bay have engaged in hunger strikes to protest about current conditions at the detention facility;

B. whereas 86 of the remaining prisoners have been cleared for release but are still being held indefinitely;

C. whereas the European Union and the United States share fundamental values of freedom, democracy, respect for international law, the rule of law and human rights;

D. whereas at least 10 detainees participating in the hunger strike have been force fed in order to stay alive; whereas international agreements among doctors require respect of an individual’s informed and voluntary decision to participate in a hunger strike;

E. whereas the European Union and the United States of America share the common value of freedom of religion; whereas there have been numerous reports stating the mistreatment of Korans belonging to the detainees by American military personnel during cell searches;

F. whereas the EU-US joint statement of June 15, 2009 notes the commitment of President Obama to order the closure of the Guantánamo Bay detention facility by January 22, 2010 and welcomes the ‘other steps to be taken, including the intensive review of its detention, transfer trial and interrogation policies in the fight against terrorism and increased transparency about past practices in regard to these policies’;

G. whereas the US is closing its only civilian flight into Guantánamo leaving the only flight available a military flight requiring individuals to receive permission from the Pentagon to board, thus limiting the access of the press, lawyers, and human rights workers;

1. Notes the close transatlantic relationship based on shared core values and respect for basic, universal and non-negotiable human rights, such as the right to a fair trial and the ban on arbitrary detention; welcomes the close transatlantic cooperation on a wide range of international human rights issues;

2. Calls on US authorities to treat detainees with respect for their inherent dignity to uphold their human rights and fundamental freedoms;

3. Expresses concern for the well-being of the detainees on hunger strike as well as for the detainees being force fed and calls on the US be respectful of their rights and decisions;

4. Urges the US to reconsider the closing of its only civilian flight into Guantánamo Bay which would limit the access of the press and civil society members;

5. Urges the US to oversee proper care of and respect for religious material while still following mandatory search procedures;

6. Underlines that prisoners still detained should be entitled to regular review of the lawfulness of their detention in line with the article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which says that ‘anyone who is deprived of his liberty by arrest or detention shall be entitled to take proceedings before a court, in order that that court may decide without delay on the lawfulness of his detention and order his release if the detention is not lawful’;

7. Reiterates its indignation and outrage at all mass terrorist attacks, and its solidarity with the victims of such attacks and its sympathy for the pain and suffering of their families, friends and relatives; reiterates, however, that the fight against terrorism cannot be waged at the expense of established basic shared values, such as respect for human rights and the rule of law;

8. Expresses its regret that the commitment of the US President to close Guantánamo by January 2010 has not yet been implemented; Reiterates its call to the US authorities to review the military commissions system to ensure fair trials, to close Guantánamo, to prohibit in any circumstances the use of torture, ill-treatment and indefinite detention without trial;

9. Views with regret the US President’s decision of 7 March 2011 to sign the executive order on detention and the revocation of the ban on military tribunals; is convinced that normal criminal trials under civilian jurisdiction are the best way to resolve the status of Guantánamo detainees; insists that detainees in US custody should be charged promptly and tried in accordance with international standards of the rule of law or else released; emphasises, in this context, that the same standards concerning fair trials should apply to all, without discrimination;

10. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Convening Authority for Military Commissions, the US Secretary of State, the US President, the US Congress and Senate, the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the EU Member States, the UN Secretary-General, the President of the UN General Assembly and the governments of the UN member states.

Andy Worthington is a freelance investigative journalist, activist, author, photographer and film-maker. He is the co-founder of the “Close Guantánamo” campaign, and the author of The Guantánamo Files: The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America’s Illegal Prison (published by Pluto Press, distributed by Macmillan in the US, and available from Amazon — click on the following for the US and the UK) and of two other books: Stonehenge: Celebration and Subversion and The Battle of the Beanfield. He is also the co-director (with Polly Nash) of the documentary film, “Outside the Law: Stories from Guantánamo” (available on DVD here – or here for the US).