US: Stop the Guantanamo Circus (Human Rights Watch)

[Eugene]

Source: Human Rights Watch

US: Stop the Guantanamo Circus

Hicks Pleads Guilty; New Detainee Arrives

(Guantanamo Bay, March 27, 2007) – Two defense lawyers for Guantanamo
detainee David Hicks were barred from representing their client yesterday,
highlighting the failure of US military commissions to meet fair trial standards,
Human Rights Watch said today. Hicks, the first person to be charged before
the military commissions authorized by Congress in 2006, pleaded guilty
to a single criminal charge.

Hicks’ plea came as the Defense Department announced the transfer of a
new detainee to Guantanamo. The Kenyan detainee, taken into custody in
Kenya, appears to be a criminal suspect who belongs in civilian criminal
court.

“The antics at the Hicks hearing underline the illegitimacy of the
Guantanamo tribunals,” said Jennifer Daskal, advocacy director of the US
Program at Human Rights Watch and an observer at the hearing.

Hicks’ two civilian defense counsel were prevented from representing him
as his hearing got underway on March 26. The presiding judge provisionally
dismissed the assistant defense counsel, stating that the government was
precluded from assigning civilian government employees to represent
defendants, even though military commission rules allow the Department
of Justice to assign its civilian lawyers to the prosecution. The judge
then removed Joshua Dratel, Hicks’ longtime civilian counsel, because he
agreed to abide by all “existent” rules, but refused to agree to “all” rules
for the tribunal without first knowing what those rules stated. According
to the judge, this ran afoul of civilian counsel’s obligations to agree to
military regulations governing representation – regulations which have not
yet been issued.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2007/03/27/usdom15572.htm

[MasonJar]

1. Impeach the whole lot of them. This is beyond illegal; it is uncon-

scionable! The Bush government is mad up of incompetent sociopaths and they have adversely affected anyone in their path.