US Guantanamo ruling 'shocking'From correspondents in London
February 21, 2007 07:14am
AMNESTY International has criticised a decision by the US appeals court preventing foreign terror suspects from challenging their detentions at Guantanamo Bay in the US legal system.
The London-based human rights group said today that it "deeply regrets" the decision that the federal courts lacked jurisdiction to hear any habeas corpus appeals from so-called "enemy combatants" at the camp in Cuba.
"The right of all detainees to challenge the lawfulness of their detention is among the most fundamental principles of international law," Amnesty's US researcher Rob Freer said.
"That any legislature or any judge anywhere should contenance such stripping of this basic protection against arbitrary detention, secret custody, torture and other ill-treatment is shocking and must be challenged."
Amnesty said that of the nearly 400 detainees still held at the US-run camp, some have been held for more than five years but none has had his indefinite detention judicially reviewed.
It repeated its claims - denied by Washington - that detainees have suffered "serious human rights violations" and said those held must be either charged with recognisable criminal offences, brought to trial or released.
"One only has to imagine what would happen if another government captured a US citizen and held him indefinitely for years on end while denying him this basic right to challenge his detention," he said.
"The US government should now turn its imagination to fully restoring an indispensable rule of law principle."
February 21, 2007 07:14am
AMNESTY International has criticised a decision by the US appeals court preventing foreign terror suspects from challenging their detentions at Guantanamo Bay in the US legal system.
The London-based human rights group said today that it "deeply regrets" the decision that the federal courts lacked jurisdiction to hear any habeas corpus appeals from so-called "enemy combatants" at the camp in Cuba.
"The right of all detainees to challenge the lawfulness of their detention is among the most fundamental principles of international law," Amnesty's US researcher Rob Freer said.
"That any legislature or any judge anywhere should contenance such stripping of this basic protection against arbitrary detention, secret custody, torture and other ill-treatment is shocking and must be challenged."
Amnesty said that of the nearly 400 detainees still held at the US-run camp, some have been held for more than five years but none has had his indefinite detention judicially reviewed.
It repeated its claims - denied by Washington - that detainees have suffered "serious human rights violations" and said those held must be either charged with recognisable criminal offences, brought to trial or released.
"One only has to imagine what would happen if another government captured a US citizen and held him indefinitely for years on end while denying him this basic right to challenge his detention," he said.
"The US government should now turn its imagination to fully restoring an indispensable rule of law principle."
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