by margaret hillcroft

Created on: August 13, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2010

"Even one day is too much time
To be hung without a charge, to be condemned without a crime
Cruel irony, in the land of liberty.
And when it come to human rights
Why is it always in some foreign land we choose to stand and fight
When will they realise, its right before our eyes.

Ah but justice is a fickle thing
One law for the common man, another for the king
And don't you know when kings can't win the game

It wont be long before the rules are changed
And its all justified when you're on the winning side."

This song came from Ireland and I am sorry I do not have the name of the writer to accompany these bitter and poignant lyrics. They could equally well apply to Guantanamo Bay and all the corruption, twisting of words and invention of new laws and use of legal loopholes which have been the hallmark of the US authorities in their dealings with detainees in this notorious prison.

In the good old days of proper wars, there was a well-defined enemy, well- defined POW camps and a well-defined Geneva Convention to protect the rights of prisoners held until the end of the war when victory was declared.

The "war against terror" is not a proper war. The war in Iraq is not a proper war. It started, at best, as a misguided act of revenge against a regime which was supposed to be behind the dreadful happenings of 9/11. The detainees held at Guantanamo are not proper prisoners of war. They are suspected unlawful "enemy combatants". The prison is not a proper POW camp. It is an "intelligence gathering center" and thus exempt from any controls in place to protect inmates. There is no "victory" to be had and no apparent end to the conflict in either Iraq or Afghanistan.

In short, there are no rules except those which have been invented to suit the situation and defend the position of the USA.

Many of the detainees at Guantanamo have been arrested without charge. Some have been handed over by Pakistani bounty hunters. There are boys from as young as ten years old and old men, taxi drivers and farm workers held for an indefinite period without trial and with no rights. Suspects, possible terrorists, potential informers are all captive and wasting their lives away in this place that is shrouded for the main part in secrecy and about which most reports are negative.

There is no solitary confinement, simply "single cell accommodation." Inmates can communicate through the walls. The lights are reported to be on 24 hours so there is no comfort of darkness. Exercise sessions are minimal.

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