This editorial talks about the lack of accountability on behalf of the U.S. government concerning the situation in Guantanamo Bay. As noted, it is possible that the U.S. has violated the War Crimes Act of 1996, the Geneva Conventions and the Uniform Code of Military Justice by using several methodically planned means of torture. Who is going to hold the U.S. government accountable? The people? Half of whom who probably have no idea where Guantanamo Bay is and what might be going on there? The ICC? As Sara noted the U.S. isn't even a member and the body lacks any real authority anyway.
I don't know who is going to step up and take responsibility for this, but Americans need to realize that what's occurring in Guantanamo has nothing to do with justice, and it sacrifices the principles we're supposedly trying to preserve, further endangering our nation by breeding international contempt and hatred. If we condemn other nations for acts of torture and allow their victims to seek refuge here, we are saying torture does not have a place in those societies. Why are we allowing it in ours?
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
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I think there are two reasons why people are not pressurizing the Government to do something about the atrocities that the US is committing in Guantanamo Bay. The first one is because they do not know what is happening there, and the second reason is because they believe the people imprisoned there are a security threat and deserve what is happening to them. I think the only way to stop such atrocities is to make the people put pressure on the Government. With elections drawing closer, it is the ideal time for the people to pressurize the Government to make changes. Spreading awareness is key to change. The right to deny anyone habeas corpus is wrong and the idea of putting someone in Guantanamo Bay without being certain of the person being guilty is preposterous. The citizens of America should imagine spending years in a facility like Guantanamo without ever having done anything to deserve it. To be innocent and still live like you're guilty. The conditions in Guantanamo Bay are barbaric, and the idea of innocent people having to live there just because they have not been proven innocent yet is just wrong. So before one argues that America needs to be protected, one must think of how it would be if he/she was imprisoned for years in a place such as Guantanamo Bay, for a crime he/she did not commit.
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