Aref Assaf

July 23, 2007

I wrote a letter recently to Senator Robert Menendez, (D-NJ) urging him to support a new resolution to corrects the failings of the 2006 Military Act Commission, MCA.  I reminded the Senator that " The MCA removes the Constitution's right to habeas corpus for persons the president designates unlawful enemy combatants. It allows the President to define who is and who is not an enemy of our country, and then takes away due process protections. It also undermines the Geneva Conventions, which set the law for America's conduct during war." I then asked the Senator to support the "Habeas Corpus Restoration Act" (H.R. 1416 and S.185) which  will restore the due process right of habeas corpus to detainees being held indefinitely at Guantánamo Bay and elsewhere." Enter Stephen E. Abraham, a civilian business layer who was assigned to work on the case of detainees in Guantanamo Bay  Cuba. After short tour of duty, Stephen, according to the New York Times front page story is emerging as "one of the Bush administration’s most unlikely adversaries." The Times article continues that "Colonel Abraham became the first military insider to criticize publicly the Guantánamo hearings, which determine whether detainees should be held indefinitely as enemy combatants. Just days after detainees’ lawyers submitted an affidavit containing his criticisms, the United States Supreme Court reversed itself and agreed to hear an appeal arguing that the hearings are unjust and that detainees have a right to contest their detentions in federal court." 

A new policy report by the Center for International Policy offers a concise overview of the many problems and concerns associated with the Guantanamo Bay prison, where nearly 400 alleged "enemy combatants" are held in violation of U.S. and international law. The report, written by CIP associates Jennifer Schuett and Abigail Poe, draws on the proceedings of a January 2007 conference on the Guantanamo prison sponsored by CIP.

See the full report: Why the Prison at Guantanamo Must Be Closed by downloading it at:
http://www.ciponline.org/cuba/ipr/gtmo_ipr0707.pdf

To read my letter to Senator Menendez, please click here.
To read the NYT article, please click here.
To read my earlier anecdotes on the subject, please click here.