This piece was reprinted by OpEd News with permission or license. It may not be reproduced in any form without permission or license from the source.
In January 2002, detainees began arriving. Few if any committed crimes. Most were seized for bounty. Washington wanted bodies. Almost 800 men were held. A little over one-fifth that number remain.
None belong there. They've been lawlessly held. They've been tortured, abused and ill-treated. They've been denied their fundamental rights. Supreme Court decisions were bypassed.
Three landmark ones stand out.
In Rasul v. Bush (June 2004), the Court granted Guantanamo detainees habeas rights. Doing so lets them challenge their detentions in civil court.
In 2005, Congress passed the Detainee Treatment Act (DTA). Enactment subverted the High Court ruling.
In Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (June 2006), the Supreme Court said federal ones retain jurisdiction over habeas cases. Guantanamo military commissions lack "the power to proceed because (their) structures and procedures violate both the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the four Geneva Conventions (of) 1949."
In October 2006, Congress passed the Military Commissions Act (MCA). It subverted the High Court ruling in more extreme form. It abrogated fundamental rule of law principles.
It gave Bush officials extraordinary unconstitutional powers. Obama continues them. They're used to detain, interrogate, torture and prosecute alleged terrorist suspects or anyone claimed to support them.
Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
