Out of Control

9 July 2004



Pentagon Circumvents Courts with Guantanamo Detainees

The Bush administration is nothing if not resilient. Having been waxed in the Supreme Court for denying the prisoners held in Guantanamo, Cuba, access to American courts, the Pentagon has decided to create its own courts for the prisoners to use. Military officers will determine if anyone held by the military is unlawfully detained. As the ancient Romans wondered, "Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?"

According to the administration, prisoners would not get legal representation before appearing in front of a new Combatant Status Review Tribunal, and the hearings may not be public. Each prisoner will be told by July 17 that he can contest his status as an "unlawful enemy combatant." In a huge concession, the military will tell the prisoners why they are being detained Every prisoner will have a US military officer assigned to assist him, but there was no requirement for the officer to have any legal training. One critic called it an "ad hoc kangaroo court" -- surely an insult to kangaroo courts like those in the Hague and in Baghdad. However, if the prisoners and their advocates don't like it, they can sue the Pentagon, again. This will take more time, and in the meanwhile, the prisoners will still be in the camp in Cuba.

What this amounts to is a refusal by the executive to follow the court's decision. Yet, the real problem lies in the decision way back when the attack on Afghanistan began to treat these men as something other than prisoners of war. This mistake, like so many made in the last three years, has come back to haunt the administration. Since the case can readily be made that the war in Afghanistan is continuing, there is a perfect right under international law for the US to continue to hold these men as POWs. The pretext for denying them this status was difficult to discern at the time, and at best, it may have been an attempt to extract information that POWs are not required to provide. And reports suggest they provided none anyway,

The last two American presidents have run their administrations in a way the British would describe as "too clever by half." In trying to outfox the opposition, they excelled in outfoxing themselves. This case is yet another example. Be that as it may, the White House has decided to undermine America's commitment to human rights, yet again, in an effort to appear to be tough on terrorism.

One might suggest a simple alternative. Ship them all to Mid-Town Manhattan and put them on trial for complicity in mass murder. The jury will certainly have no pity, and when it comes to putting on a show, Broadway has more experience than the Beltway.


© Copyright 2004 by The Kensington Review, J. Myhre, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent.


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