A Grim Birthday: 10 years of Guantánamo.
11 Jan 2012
A Grim Birthday – 10 years of Guantanamo Bay
"The US is violating human rights with global implications"
This week marks the 10th year of Guantanamo Bay’s controversial existence. Despite President Obama promising to close the detention centre 171 prisoners remain in detention without trial.
Human rights organisations are urging the US to fulfil the President’s promise to prosecute the remaining detainees or repatriate them safely to their home or third party countries.
Andrea Prasow from Human Rights Watch says “in the aftermath of 9/11 fear allowed the detention centre to be established but now there is no excuse, if there ever was one, to keep Guantanamo Bay open”.
The human rights advocate has been to the detention centre 36 times in order to monitor trials and describes it as a deeply depressing place. I asked her if she believes Guantanamo Bay is still an important topic for President Obama and his administration.
She says Guantanamo remains a highly relevant issue . She says America will find it increasingly difficult to urge other nations to abide by International Law while it still flouts the legislation