Hicks wrote to his father Terry following a recent interrogation by Australian consular officials, federal police and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) agents in Cuba. The letter explained that he spent “all day stuck in a small cage with no daily program” and was “desperate to get home”. Hicks said he was informed that he would not be given access to a lawyer but that “if you tell us everything you know, you’ll get back to Australia quicker”.

This bribe constitutes a clear breach of the Geneva Conventions and is in contravention of basic legal procedures and principles. As Stephen Kenny, the Hicks family lawyer, told the WSWS: “Telling someone who has been held for over five months that he is not entitled to have a lawyer but that if he cooperates he will be sent home sooner, is illegal and would be condemned by courts in any civilised country.

“We maintain that David is completely innocent and that the Australian government, as an ally with the U.S. in the so-called fight against terrorism, could and should play a significant role in securing Hicks and Habib’s release. The Australian government, instead of demanding the release of its citizens, as they have done for others imprisoned overseas, has refused to lift a finger or make a single protest. Their attitude is that the American government has Habib and Hicks and there is nothing they can do.”