Guantánamo Bay. Still here 10 years on.

[Tank]

http://www.protectthehuman.com/petition_actions/10-years-on-end-detentions-at-guantanamo-bay

On 11 January 2002 the first detainees were transferred to Guantánamo Bay. Since then, the US detention facility has made headlines with allegations of torture, enforced disappearances and illegal detention.

A decade on and 171 detainees remain at Guantánamo Bay. At least 12 arrived as part of the original group first transferred ten years ago. Most have never been charged with a crime and don't know when they will face trial, if at all. Those who have been charged face unfair trial by military commission.

Indefinite detention without trial violates international human rights law and must end now.

If I were a Muslim I would hate America for this abomination to the rule of law. Guantánamo bay is the West's dirty little non-secret that is a disgrace to any claims we have to 'moral superiority'.

[Anne D.]

Yes, Guantanamo's continued existence and the U.S.'s National Defense Authorization Act, sanctioning indefinite detention w/o trial, are truly repugnant. Obama has been a huge disappointment to me in his continuation and expansion of Bush's scary "anti-terrorism" policies. This is not the candidate I voted for.

Glenn Greenwald, a writer for salon.com, has written some great articles on these topics.

Thanks, Tank, for the link to the petition.

[Sandra Craft]

If I were a Muslim I would hate America for this abomination to the rule of law. Guantánamo bay is the West's dirty little non-secret that is a disgrace to any claims we have to 'moral superiority'.

Try saying that around here without getting accusations of "helping terrorists" and being unpatriotic, even from some liberals.  Personally, I agree that the detentions at Guantanamo Bay are among the worst things this country has ever done and has probably been responsible for creating far more terrorists than bin Laden could have in his wildest dreams.

[The Magic Pudding]

The US actually having a base in Cuba seems a bit odd to me.
I didn't find the British being in Hong Kong or remaining in Gibraltar odd so perhaps I'm being inconsistent.
I suppose the powerful do what they want and they'll always find a way to justify it, ho hum.

[xSilverPhinx]

If I were a Muslim I would hate America for this abomination to the rule of law. Guantánamo bay is the West's dirty little non-secret that is a disgrace to any claims we have to 'moral superiority'.

Try saying that around here without getting accusations of "helping terrorists" and being unpatriotic, even from some liberals.  Personally, I agree that the detentions at Guantanamo Bay are among the worst things this country has ever done and has probably been responsible for creating far more terrorists than bin Laden could have in his wildest dreams.

"Terrorist aider" is the new "communist". Gotta love how these things go.

[Sandra Craft]

"Terrorist aider" is the new "communist". Gotta love how these things go.

I linked the Amnesty petition to my Facebook page (it gets little enough use) with my comments, and within the hour I had one old friend giving me a piece of her mind about it and telling me she'd feel sorry for the prisoners in GB only when we started acting as badly the terrorists what with beheadings and such.  Honestly, I don't want to set the bar that low for the US -- it's already a good deal lower than I care for.

[Anne D.]

"Terrorist aider" is the new "communist". Gotta love how these things go.

I linked the Amnesty petition to my Facebook page (it gets little enough use) with my comments, and within the hour I had one old friend giving me a piece of her mind about it and telling me she'd feel sorry for the prisoners in GB only when we started acting as badly the terrorists what with beheadings and such.  Honestly, I don't want to set the bar that low for the US -- it's already a good deal lower than I care for.

Agreed. Plus there's the small matter of a large percentage of those who have been detained there not actually being guilty of anything. Many detainees were rounded up simply on the word of paid informants.

[Sandra Craft]

Agreed. Plus there's the small matter of a large percentage of those who have been detained there not actually being guilty of anything. Many detainees were rounded up simply on the word of paid informants.

Another huge point, but I've found that many people assume that since the GB inmates are being detained they are therefore terrorists.  The minute the word "terrorist" is used every other consideration goes out the window.