The U.S. government must end the legal black hole into which it has thrown hundreds of detainees in Guantánamo Bay in Cuba, Amnesty International said Friday, the first anniversary of the first prisoner transfers from Afghanistan to the U.S. Naval Base. There are currently more than 600 detainees of around 40 nationalities held in Guantánamo.
"This legal limbo is a continuing violation of human rights standards which the international community must not ignore", Amnesty International said.
"No access to the courts, lawyers or relatives; the prospect of indefinite detention in small cells for up to 24 hours a day; the possibility of trials by executive military commissions with the power to hand down death sentences and no right of
"This legal limbo is a continuing violation of human rights standards which the international community must not ignore", Amnesty International said.
"No access to the courts, lawyers or relatives; the prospect of indefinite detention in small cells for up to 24 hours a day; the possibility of trials by executive military commissions with the power to hand down death sentences and no right of
appeal: is this how the USA defends human rights and the rule of law?", Amnesty International asked, recalling the Secretary of State's promise last year that the USA would "not relax our commitment to advancing the cause of human rights".
Amnesty International has repeatedly written to the U.S. authorities calling for the detainees to be treated in accordance with international law and standards, and has also requested access to the Guantánamo facility. It has received no response.
Amnesty International has repeatedly written to the U.S. authorities calling for the detainees to be treated in accordance with international law and standards, and has also requested access to the Guantánamo facility. It has received no response.