Guantanamo prosecutors call trials a "fraud"
Monday, August 1, 2005
According to leaked emails, two former prosecutors allege that the US military commissions at Guantanamo Bay are fraudulent and rigged.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that one prosecutor, Major Robert Preston, wrote that the process was perpetrating a fraud on the American public."I consider the insistence on pressing ahead with cases that would be marginal even if properly prepared to be a severe threat to the reputation of the military justice system and even a fraud on the American people," Maj Preston wrote. "Surely they don't expect that this fairly half-assed effort is all that we have been able to put together after all this time."
Captain John Carr, the second prosecutor, wrote to his supervisor: "You have repeatedly said to the office that the military panel will be handpicked and will not acquit these detainees and that we only needed to worry about building a record for the review panel."
"There is absolutely no evidence that it is rigged." Brig Gen Hemingway stated in defence to these claims, "In each of the four cases which have been referred, the appointing authority John Alterburgh made an independent determination that the evidence was sufficient to warrant trial."
Related news
edit- "Amnesty International calls for Guantanamo shutdown" — Wikinews, May 25, 2005
- "Red Cross reveals it told U.S. officials about Koran disrespect on multiple occasions" — Wikinews, May 20, 2005
- "Muslim leaders don't accept "pressured" apology" — Wikinews, May 17, 2005
Sources
edit- Leigh Sales. "Leaked emails claim Guantanamo trials rigged" — ABC, August 1, 2005
- "Leaks suggest US military terror trials rigged" — AFP, July 31, 2005
- "Guantanamo trials 'half-assed'" — News24.com, July 31, 2005
The text of this article has been released into the public domain. In the event that this is not legally possible, this article may be used for any purpose, without any condition, unless such conditions are required by law. This applies worldwide. Copyright terms on images, however, may vary, so please check individual image pages prior to duplication. Please note that this only applies to Wikinews content created prior to September 25, 2005. All content created after that date is released under a Creative Commons license which is mentioned at the bottom of each article. This is currently the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License. |