by Joyce Gray

Created on: March 29, 2009   Last Updated: April 02, 2009

Should the US close the military prison on Guantanamo Bay?

The obvious and easy answer is "yes", but after a careful examination of the question, the better answer is a resounding "no".

After years of negative publicity, the first reaction of politicians worried about public opinion is simply to close it. But a prison with another name and in another place would still have to address the same problems and serve the same functions. This is a case where perception has moved so far from fact that the truth is lost.

Let's look at the reality of the situation:

Guantanamo Bay Prison is located at Guantanamo Bay Naval Station, which is under the control of the U.S. military, but is on Cuban soil. This provides proximity to the continental United States, but the isolation of the military installations there, and the natural barrier of water and distance, protect the U.S. from any threat from prisoners or escapees.

Controversial questioning techniques such as waterboarding have never been employed at Guantanamo Bay. Some prisoners had experienced such practices in prisons (some of which were not under the control of the U.S.) in the Middle East before they ever arrived at Guantanamo.

In 2003, when the prison there began to receive a flow of prisoners taken in combat in Iraq and elsewhere, the classification and treatment of those prisoners had not been clearly defined. How does a massive military, guided by the Geneva Convention and traditional codes of conduct, confront an insurgent enemy which disregards all legal restraints and respects no authority?

Prison personnel had little time to adapt. In the intervening years, every aspect of prison life has been scrutinized and codified for humane and fair treatment. In fact, under the intense scrutiny of human rights groups, the news media, and government officials, prisoners at Guantanamo Bay likely have more protection from abuse than elsewhere in the U.S.

Some prisoners have taken advantage of such scrutiny to make the lives of their guards, who are bound by rigid rules, miserable. For example, they use water bottles as receptacles for their waste, and then spray it on the guards. As a U.S. citizen, try that in the county jail and see how you come out! Such behavior has been underreported by the media, perhaps because it flies in the face of the popular campaign to smear Guantanamo Bay Prison.

Though some of the prisoners in Guantanamo may have simply been swept up in the activities of a terrorist group or insurgency, many of

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