As the new Democratic Party majority in the U.S. Congress considers whether to revisit the Military Commissions Act of 2006 (MCA), the administration of President George W. Bush is proposing still more restrictions on detainees in U.S. custody.The government has proposed limiting contact between defence lawyers and detainees at Guantánamo Bay because it says detainees' communications, such as news of world events, could incite the prisoners to violence.
The U.S. proposal to limit lawyers' contacts with their Guantánamo was contained in a filing to a federal appeals court in Washington. The case deals with an Afghani detainee, but the government wants the restrictions to apply to other prisoners at Guantánamo. The prison camp currently holds some 430 detainees.
Among the more controversial provisions of the MCA, which President Bush signed into law in October, is one that strips U.S. courts of jurisdiction to consider writs of habeas corpus filed by detainees classified as enemy combatants. The administration contends that the president may classify any person, even a U.S. citizen, as an enemy combatant.
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1205-04.htm
Please also see:
Fine Print in Defense Bill Opens Door to Martial Law
http://public.cq.com/public/20061201_homeland.html
Among the more controversial provisions of the MCA, which President Bush signed into law in October, is one that strips U.S. courts of jurisdiction to consider writs of habeas corpus filed by detainees classified as enemy combatants. The administration contends that the president may classify any person, even a U.S. citizen, as an enemy combatant.
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1205-04.htm
Please also see:
Fine Print in Defense Bill Opens Door to Martial Law
http://public.cq.com/public/20061201_homeland.html