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| Four Gitmo Prisoners Refuse [to participate in] Hearings |
| 2004-08-05 |
| EFL- I'm sure there will be many who would call these proceedings a Kangaroo Court, but as compared to trials in Iran the Hague and Los Angeles, I think Military tribunals are just the ticket. GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) - Four Guantanamo Bay prisoners have refused to take part in U.S. military review hearings, leaving a panel of officers to examine the cases without testimony from the detainees, military officials said Wednesday. That news was confirmed as Navy Secretary Gordon England was to visit the naval base to observe the review hearings, called to examine the status of hundreds of terror suspects held at the prison and to determine if they should remain in detention. Four detainees whose cases came up Monday and Tuesday "chose not to participate in the process," said Cmdr. Beci Brenton, a Navy spokeswoman. "These are just four detainees who have historically not cooperated," Brenton said. "They've not interacted with interrogators." It wasn't clear whether the men attended their hearings. Two other detainees went before the review panel Friday and Saturday, and the second one summoned a fellow detainee as a witness, Brenton said. Witnesses allowed - better than Cuba and Saudi Arabia. Recommendations by the three-member military panel have yet to be announced. Reporters are to be allowed inside hearings starting Thursday, but the military says it will close portions deemed classified. Reporters are not allowed to name any of the prisoners. A hint of transparancy and freedom of the press - how innovative. Human rights groups criticize the process as a sham, saying the three officers assigned to hear cases can't be considered impartial and that each detainee should be allowed a lawyer. "What you have is a process that would be suitable for resolving a dispute over a parking ticket. It's not an acceptable process," said Alistair Hodgett, of Amnesty International. "It's really an after-the-fact justification for detaining people without charge or fair trial." Though a federal judge in Washington refused a request Tuesday to halt hearings for two Algerians, defense lawyers said they were pleased that Judge Richard Leon nevertheless said statements detainees make during reviews can be excluded from court proceedings. The review panels are separate from a military tribunal being set up to try at least four detainees, starting with pretrial hearings planned in late August. Military lawyer Lt. Cmdr. Charlie Swift, who is representing Salim Ahmed Hamdan of Yemen, said he has objected to being barred from his review hearing because it could harm his client's case at trial. Hamdan is charged with conspiracy to attack civilians, to murder and to commit terrorism. Notice how the military lawyer is defending his client. Military lawyers don't pull punches and are not patsies. JAG is a little over the top, but A Few Good Men was pretty accurate - I especially liked it when Tom Cruise stupidly wore the wrong uniform. Each detainee is being assigned a military officer as a "personal representative" at his review. But Swift said that officer, like panel members, is functionally a "government agent" who will not act in Hamdan's best interest. |
| Posted by:Super Hose |