[News] UN Human Rights Rapporteurs' report on Guantanamo
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News at freedomarchives.org
Sun Feb 19 13:32:05 EST 2006
From:
<mailto:skleine-ahlbrandt at ohchr.org>Stephanie
<mailto:skleine-ahlbrandt at ohchr.org>Kleine-Ahlbrandt
Sent: Friday, February 17, 2006 9:37 AM
Subject: Fw: UN Human Rights Rapporteurs' report on Guantanamo
In case you have not yet seen it, the full report
is available at (press release only below):
<http://www.ohchr.org/english/bodies/chr/docs/62chr/E.CN.4.2006.120_.pdf>http://www.ohchr.org/english/bodies/chr/docs/62chr/E.CN.4.2006.120_.pdf
HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERTS ISSUE JOINT REPORT
ON SITUATION OF DETAINEES IN GUANTANAMO BAY
xxxxxxxxxx
16 February 2006
The following statement was issued today by the
Chairman Rapporteur of the Working Group on
Arbitrary Detention, Leila Zerrougui; Special
Rapporteur on the independence of judges and
lawyers, Leandro Despouy; the Special Rapporteur
on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment, Manfred Nowak; the
Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or
belief, Asma Jahangir, and the Special Rapporteur
on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the
highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, Paul Hunt:
Five independent investigators of the United
Nations Commission on Human Rights are calling on
the United States to close immediately the
detention centre in Guantánamo Bay and bring all
detainees before an independent and competent tribunal or release them.
The call comes in a report published today
following an 18-month joint study by the experts
into the situation of detainees at that United
States Naval Base. The report's findings are
based on information from the United States
Government, interviews conducted by the experts
with former Guantánamo Bay detainees currently
residing or detained in France, Spain and the
United Kingdom and responses from lawyers acting
on behalf of some current detainees. It also
relies on information available in the public
domain, including reports prepared by
non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
information contained in declassified official
United States documents and media reports. The
experts expressed regret that the Government did
not allow them the opportunity to have free
access to detainees in Guantanamo Bay and carry
out private interviews, as provided by the terms
of reference accepted by all countries they visit.
The five experts ? specializing in issues related
to arbitrary detention, freedom of religion, the
right to health, torture and the independence of
judges and lawyers ? conclude that the persons
held at Guantánamo Bay are entitled to challenge
the legality of their detention before a judicial
body and to obtain release if detention is found
to lack a proper legal basis. The continuing
detention of all persons held at Guantánamo Bay
amounts to arbitrary detention, they state,
adding that ? where criminal proceedings are
initiated against a detainee ? the executive
branch of the United States Government operates
as judge, prosecutor and defence counsel in
violation of various guarantees of the right to a fair trial
According to the experts, attempts by the United
States Administration to redefine "torture" in
the framework of the struggle against terrorism
in order to allow certain interrogation
techniques that would not be permitted under the
internationally accepted definition of torture
are of utmost concern. The confusion with regard
to authorized and unauthorized interrogation
techniques over the last years is particularly
alarming. The interrogation techniques authorized
by the Department of Defense, particularly if
used simultaneously, amount to degrading
treatment. If in individual cases, which were
described in interviews, the victim experienced
severe pain or suffering, these acts amounted to
torture as defined in article 1 of the Convention
against Torture. Furthermore, the general
conditions of detention, in particular the
uncertainty about the length of detention and
prolonged solitary confinement, amount to inhuman
treatment and to a violation of the right to
health as well as a violation of the right of
detainees to be treated with humanity and with
respect for the inherent dignity of the human
person. They add that force-feeding of competent
detainees violates the right to health as well as
the ethical duties of any health professionals who may be involved.
Among their recommendations, the experts say
terrorism suspects should be detained in
accordance with criminal procedure that respects
the safeguards enshrined in relevant
international law. Accordingly, the United States
Government should either expeditiously bring all
Guantánamo Bay detainees to trial or release them
without further delay. They also call on the
Government to close down the Guantánamo Bay
detention centre and to refrain from any practice
amounting to torture or cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment, discrimination on the basis
of religion, and violations of the rights to
health and freedom of religion. The investigators
also request full and unrestricted access to the
Guantánamo Bay facilities, including private
interviews with detainees. Consideration should
also be given to trying suspected terrorists
before a competent international tribunal.
Chronology leading up to report:
The five mandate holders have been following the
situation of detainees held at the United States
Naval Base at Guantánamo Bay since January 2002.
In June 2004, the Annual Meeting of special
rapporteurs/representatives, experts and
chairpersons of working groups of the special
procedures and the advisory services programme of
the Commission on Human Rights, decided that they
should continue this task as a group because the
situation concerns each of their mandates.
In studying the situation, they have continuously
sought the cooperation of the United States
authorities. They sent a number of letters
requesting the United States Government to allow
them to visit Guantánamo Bay in order to gather
first hand information from the prisoners
themselves. By letter dated 28 October 2005, the
Government of the United States of America
extended an invitation for a one-day visit to
three of the five mandate holders, inviting them
"to visit the Department of Defense's detention
facilities [of Guantánamo Bay]". The invitation
stipulated that "the visit will not include
private interviews or visits with detainees". In
their response to the Government dated 31 October
2005, the mandate holders accepted the
invitation, including the short duration of the
visit and the fact that only three of them were
permitted access, and informed the US Government
that the visit was to be carried out on 6
December 2005 . However, they did not accept the
exclusion of private interviews with detainees,
as that would contravene the terms of reference
for fact-findings missions by special procedures
and undermine the purpose of an objective and
fair assessment of the situation of detainees
held in Guantánamo Bay. In the absence of
assurances from the Government that it would
comply with the terms of reference, the mandate
holders decided on 18 November 2005 to cancel the visit.
* *** *
For use of information media; not an official record
________________________
Stephanie T. Kleine-Ahlbrandt
Programme Manager, Asia-Pacific Unit
United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Tel. + 41.22.917.9112 - Fax. + 41.22.917.9018
email: <mailto:skleine-ahlbrandt at ohchr.org>skleine-ahlbrandt at ohchr.org
Visiting address: Palais Wilson - 52, rue des
Pâquis, CH-1201 Geneva, Switzerland
Mailing address: UNOG-OHCHR, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Website: http:// <http://www.ohchr.org/>www.ohchr.org
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