http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/15/AR2010071505 887_pf.html
Precautions are needed if Algerian detainees are sent home Friday, July 16, 2010; A18 IT IS NOT EVERY day that detainees attempt to block their own release from the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. But that is what six Algerians who have been held at the prison for some eight years are trying to do. Judge Gladys Kessler of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia cleared the detainees for release late last year, but she put the release on hold after the United States indicated that it planned to send them to their native country. The men fear that in Algeria they would face abuse, torture or worse at the hands of the government or militant Islamic groups. They say they are willing to go to a third country or to stay in Guantanamo for years rather than return. The Obama administration notes that it has repatriated other Algerian detainees without incident and that it expects the same results in this case. It also argues that while the judiciary has the power to order release, it has no authority to interfere with the executive's decisions on where to send detainees. A <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/09/AR201007090 4926.html> decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit agreed with the government. The Algerians appear to have no other recourse, given that Congress has forbidden detainees from applying for asylum or seeking refugee status. Last week, the D.C. Circuit lifted the hold on the Algerian repatriation; the detainees have since asked the Supreme Court to block their transfer to allow them to fully make their case before an independent federal judge. The court should do so. The Convention Against Torture -- to which the United States is a signatory -- forbids repatriation if it is "more likely than not" that individuals will be tortured. Algeria's shoddy human rights record has been well documented by nongovernmental organizations. Daniel Fried, the special envoy in charge of detainee affairs, has offered an affidavit attesting to the administration's belief that it would be safe to send the men back home. There is every reason to believe that this assessment was made in good faith, and it may very well be accurate. Moreover, the judiciary generally has no business second-guessing the political and policy prerogatives of the executive, especially in the foreign policy arena. The government's assertions and prerogatives must be given significant weight and should be accepted unless the Algerians present clear, convincing and particularized evidence that the administration's calculations are wrong. But given the sordid history of Guantanamo, including a record of claims by the executive branch that have melted away when tested in court, the administration should not be given the exclusive right to determine these men's fate. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [email protected]. -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [email protected] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [email protected] Unsubscribe: [email protected] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtmlYahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
