Obama Seeks Halt to Legal Proceedings at Guantanamo
I am very pleased to announce that on his first day in office, Barack Obama moved to put a 120-day stop on the legal travesty that is the Guantanamo Bay military trial system:
GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba, Jan. 20 -- In one of its first actions, the Obama administration instructed military prosecutors late Tuesday to seek a 120-day suspension of legal proceedings involving detainees at the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba -- a clear break with the approach of the outgoing Bush administration.
The instruction came in a motion filed with a military court in the case of five defendants accused of organizing the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. The motion called for "a continuance of the proceedings" until May 20 so that "the newly inaugurated president and his administration [can] review the military commissions process, generally, and the cases currently pending before military commissions, specifically."
The same motion was filed in another case scheduled to resume Wednesday, involving a Canadian detainee, and will be filed in all other pending matters.
Such a request may not be automatically granted by military judges, and not all defense attorneys may agree to such a suspension. But the move is a first step toward closing a detention facility and system of military trials that became a worldwide symbol of the Bush administration's war on terrorism and its unyielding attitude toward foreign and domestic critics.
This is particularly heartening in light of the many stories like this:
An FBI agent who previously testified Omar Khadr identified fellow Canadian Maher Arar as someone he saw at al-Qaeda safe houses and possibly training camps in Afghanistan acknowledged on Tuesday the teen's identification of the Ottawa software engineer did not happen as immediately as he first stated.
Robert Fuller made the admission during cross-examination by Khadr's defence team at Khadr's preliminary hearing at the U.S. military commission in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigations agent testified on Tuesday that during an interrogation session in Afghanistan in 2002, Khadr came around to saying that on several occasions he had seen Arar, who was cleared of any links to terrorism by a Canadian public inquiry in 2006.
Khadr said he saw Arar at a safehouse in Kabul, and possibly at a training camp outside Kabul, Fuller said. Both facilities were run by al-Qaeda militant Abu Musab al-Siri.
But hey, it was all for a higher purpose, right?
Arar was detained in New York on Sept. 26, 2002, on his way home from a family vacation.
Fuller's first interrogation of Khadr about Arar occurred on Oct. 7, a day before U.S. officials sent Arar to Syria, where he was held for more than 10 months on suspicion of terrorist activity, and tortured.
Fuller testified he did not know whether the information he gleaned from Khadr played any role Arar's deportation to Syria.
The Syrian-born Canadian was later released and cleared of any connection to terrorism in 2006 by a Canadian commission that recommended he receive a $10.5-million settlement for the ordeal. The U.S., however, has refused to clear Arar's name.
bravo President Obama, brav-o!
I second that bravo!
who know nothing about how the world REALLY works, will latch onto this and imply that Obama is "stopping the trials to release his terrorist buddies".
The actuality of this is that those on trial are pleading guilty in the hope that the U.S. WILL execute them...and thus incite more hate against the United States.
By stopping the war tribunals, Obama is hoping to show that the United States does not need to break it's own laws and rules to defeat its enemies. Rather, it is to show that once again, we are a nation of law and respectful of the rights of everyone...including our enemies.
Gitmo is a blight on America's heritage. The prison should not only be shuttered, it should be disassembled.
Vote GOP and move forward to the 18th Century.
who is very old, has an opinion about this. Now, don't take this the wrong way, cuz it isn't my opinion, but here is basically his thoughts on it. He says that the US people are not really mad about Gitmo, or the torture. They are mad because what has been hidden from world view for years is out in the open now. It makes Americans nervous when the world can see what their government really does. Bush and Cheney personified that. They didn't care what the world thought of them or the US. It was all out in the open.
Don't know how close to the truth he is, but I must also point out he's kind of senile.
Oh yeah. We're mad about the secrecy as well. But the other shit -- in-fucking-furiating.
me-oww!
wouldn't do me much good to tell him Miss Kitty. Like I said, he's pretty senile. Surprised on most days if he even knows who he is himself. But the old codger is a fighter, I'll give him that.
Speaking for no other than myself...
I'm furious about the torture, the lies, the renditions, the way the entire bush administration and their supporters/enablers, called anyone with a dissenting opinion traitors. And on and on and on...
Tell your uncle, that at least for one irate American, that's not the case.
and I feel the same way. My government isn't any better. Hopefully there is change in the air here too.
taught our recently departed one to do that waving thing.
But ours never figured out what to do with a purse.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
but since when did they have Morpheus in GITMO?
http://weblogs.newsday.com/entertainment/tv/b...
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
"Whatever you think you know about this man is irrelevant. Some believe he is the most dangerous man alive," said Agent Smith.
All that we're asking in return is your cooperation in bringing a known terrorist to justice.
this and you give me my...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wky5H1xC6-I
I know my rights.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
This is going to take a little getting used to. An administration that fights for justice rather then committing injustices. I'm liking it!!!
So he wants illegal proceedings now?
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
reverse that!
________________
common sense matters as much as truth
.
... would have been pushing Cheney down the stairs yesterday.
/snark
aren't the only one thinking that. In the back of my mind, I kept saying, arrest them, arrest them. You have just taken an oath. Do what you have sworn to do. But then I woke up. Damn beer.
I think most people who aren't bushites were thinkin that.
should be waterboarded so he can determine if it's torture.
________________
common sense matters as much as truth
I thought a good start ...
Wed, 01/21/2009 - 10:16 — Shadowgm
... would have been pushing Cheney down the stairs yesterday.
/snark
_________________________________________________________________
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHHJsXH3BiU&fe...
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
I cannot believe they let Widmark play in the Alamo with that scene on his resume.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
thousands of bogus arrests and tortured confessions from an intelligence service that is it's own oxymoron and non-sequiter simultaneously.
and fuck the warhawks. the only real enemies we have had since wwii are the ones we keep creating.
________________
common sense matters as much as truth
If a medical test produced as many false positive results as torture did, then no one would use it.
Why do we continue to use torture for information? Though, I think I know sadly.
to justify their crimes. That's it in a nutshell.
to incorrectly finger an innocent man. Maher Arar was sent to Syria on this coerced info and tortured for a year. Spirited out of JFK on a stopover from his vacation to his home in Canada. His family wasn't even told, he just never got off the plane in Canada. They had to BEG for info, for weeks. Make no mistake about it; the Canucks were total assholes about Arar as well.
The conversation starts, "Have you ever seen this man?" "No." "Are you sure?" and ends up hours later with "Yes. I am positive. He is the one I saw in the safe house in Afghanistan on such and such a date." Even the Canadian DOS can verify the guy was in Canada on the date, but they take him anyway.
And the informant? A 15 year old kid, captured for allegedly lobbing a grenade during a firefight (The US says after the hostilities ceased -- right, like they're any kind of believable), and charged with a war crime, defending himself from an aggressor.
Shot three times, lost the sight in the left eye, threatened with deportation to Egypt for bigger torture and rape, kicked when he collapsed during a hunger strike, force fed, moved every 3 hours to a new cell for 21 days, and all the normal fun and games and Gitmo.
And he's only 22. How the hell were your teen years?
me-oww!
That with all the finger pointing, accusations, and threats of war against Syria; the Bush Administration would send people to Syria to be tortured.
So my question is this; what the hell was really going on?
those GDCSers were sending all sorts of people to be tortured in Syria, and Syria was obliging. At the same time, CheneyBushCo were claiming that Syria was 'uncooperative.'
I guess expecting a blow job from the President Bashar al-Assad and not getting it was a big disappointment, and was the reason Syria was under threat from the US.
me-oww!
With Cheney in a wheel chair, can someone hire Catherine Bates as his care giver?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHHJsXH3BiU
He chats a bit, then gets down to business.
me-oww!
he did that! That was so rude! He put his cigarette out on her floor!
I'm sure that Dick is up outta that chair today...and back to his old kitten kicking self again.
Vote GOP and move forward to the 18th Century.
Of course, if Cheney should ever be brought to trial, he'll pull a Kenny Lay and croak before serving time.
I LOVE your suggestion, Moniker!
with caveats.
Here is Glenn Greenwald.
There must be a complete and transparent inquiry into the entire war crime regime of George W Bush et al.
Close Gitmo immediately and open a war crime tribunal thereafter.
statusquObama, change you can only pretend in
I found an AFP story on Yahoo saying that Omar Khadr's trial has been approved for a 120-day continuation.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090121/pl_afp/u...
I mean, WTF is his crime? Acting like a soldier in a war zone?
me-oww!
The motion called for "a continuance of the proceedings until May 20..."
Methinks you meant a "discontinuance"...
If not then nothing has changed or will until May 20, right?
Make no motto of love that worships war
They will continue the proceedings at a later date. That buys the Justice Department time to review the files and decide whether to dismiss cases.
I thought it was incontinence.
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
ysbaddaden,
I should have "incontinenced" my brain before commenting! :>0
Make no motto of love that worships war
The ancient Egyptians did through their nose.
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
Do you mind? I'm trying to eat here...
Make no motto of love that worships war
When I was in school some of the others thought it strange that I would read the novelization of the movie Tales From the Crypt while eating lunch.
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
Thank you, Nicole.
Make no motto of love that worships war
...than that fugitive murderer who got away yesterday will be in for years of major disappointment.
Politically I agree, things won't change much on that score. But what about competence? Ideals? These things mark Obama as vastly different than Bush and things could end up very different.
That I certainly had no doubts about...
Make no motto of love that worships war
in h*ll he'll be as bad as Bush. No. Way. But he has one heckuva mess in front of him, and there probably won't be cheering mobs for him by the time he is done, no matter what he does. I honestly do not envy the man.
This simply is a great first day.
You need to give it six months; if things have not changed I will agree with you. Time may very well prove you correct in your statement. I just think you need to have an open mind and give the new team a chance. Ultimately, you have nothing to lose by with holding judgement; until, after the Obama Administration has established some kind of a track record.
Personal note: I have my misgivings about the New Administration as well. If it turns out to be a big let down. I will be one of the first to turn against the New Administration. I just want to be sure that I am doing it for the right reasons.
I know he picked some people that concern me for his cabinet appointments; on the other hand, I understand why he did it. Some of these people are quite dangerous. Hillary Clinton, for instance, was the big advocate of the HMOs. If Obama is serious about fixing healthcare then it is a good move to send her attention overseas. Sometimes it is easier to get rid of those that will stand against you by finding gainful employment for them elsewhere. Some of his campaign rheteoric was a bit Hawkish. It doesnt't necessarily mean that his administration will act Hawkishly. Bush, for example, promised to never use the military for Nation Building Missions; when he was debating Al Gore. We all know that was a bunch of smoke and mirrors. It could very well turn out that Obama was just blowing smoke up the asses of the Defense Industry; telling them what they want to hear so that he wouldn't be labelled a peacenik or a dove. It wouldn't of hurt him with his own constituency; but, it may have encouraged more wingnuts to go to the polls and vote for McCain.
He needs to start legal proceedings at the Justice dept.
In God you trust? WTF? The Chief Justice of the Supreme court has no bussiness asking this of the president of the USA. What a collossal failure he is. Impeach this partisan hack immediately and send him back to conservative Bush's "ranch." Or at least school him in the separation of church and state. I think it was deliberate.
Roberts is a fool, or a fox, either way he should be impeached and sent packing.
Make no motto of love that worships war
Obama wanted that in the oath i read in the paper.
An actual start of those particular proceedings would be welcomed, especially by the founding father's who, surely, are turning over in their graves...
Make no motto of love that worships war
The Canadian inquiry showed that Arar was in Canada, not Afghanistan, on the date in question according to todays Globe&Mail.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/...
if the Jordanian immigrant I married in Texas in 1997 and divorced in June 1999, while he was still a conditional resident, is now an American citizen. I want to know where this man is and I want to know who has been harassing me anonymously for several years, as well as why I cannot locate the record of my divorce in the Travis County Vital Records. If I can't get this information from the Freedom of Information Act, can I ask Attorney General Eric Holder for it?
Anyone here, please advise.
and questions of citizenship. And the state in which you obtained your divorce should answer your divorce questions. If you had an atty who helped with the dissolution, there'd be a place to direct questions and concerns about your divorce. That's where I'd start.
And report all instances of harassment to your local constabulary. Helps if you can make friends with anyone down there working on the case.
me-oww!
I'm oversees. I will check with the embassy.
I'm assuming that you don't have a copy of your divorce paperwork. If you don't have a copy and the court house doesn't have a copy then technically you are still married. I would go to a paralegal and refile the divorce paperwork. It's much cheaper than using a lawyer. There are ways to file divorce even if you do not know where the person lives.
As far as the harassment goes; that can be difficult to stop. Under some circumstances you can get a restraining order; but, it's not very effective if the harassment is done annonymously.
I do have a copy of my divorce paperwork, but the divorce cannot be found in the public record and I, personally, did not have it sealed. At the time of the divorce, he was not an American citizen but I have not been able to find out if he did get the citizenship or if maybe he was deported. It would be a big relief to me if I knew for sure that he was no longer in the USA. President Obama just mentioned today that we should utilize the freedom of information act and if it was a matter of national security, Eric Holder would be consulted.
http://people.yahoo.com/
http://www.intelius.com/search-name.php?searc...
Upchuck, thanks. One question. Do you know if the information in these searches is fairly recent? What a difference a day makes. President Obama's second day in office and I feel better already.
Even if you are abroad, contact the congressional representative for the area where you were divorced. Often, congressional staff will put aids on things like this to help get information. Perhaps request the embassy where you are work with the congressional office.
Divorces are state matters, yet immigration is Federal. So you want someone who can easily make requests to state as well federal agencies. The embassy staff will be more federal in level.
Thank you so much. I will do just that.
Call the FBI. Oh, wait, they're too busy chasing animal rights "terrorists".
Useless bastards.
Already heard some wanker on Fox concern-trolling that stopping the trials means Obama is soft on terrorism. (Because as we all know, the best approach to terrorism is kangaroo courts and summary executions.)
"The Good and Great Must Ever Shun, That Reckless and Abandoned One
Who Stoops to Perpetrate a Pun," Lewis Carroll, 'The Three Voices.'
do we call them the outrageous names they so richly deserve?
Or, do we attempt to genuinely engage them in serious dialogue for our mutual edification, something that seems to be so easy to resist.
Where is the forum and where are the exits.
statusquObama, change you can only pretend in
There are 2 kinds of opinions in this World. Those based upon reason and those NOT based upon reason. You cannot have a reasonable discussion with someone; if they are expressing opinions that are not based upon reason. Not all opinions are equal; only opinion based upon reason are of value. Society does a great injustice to people when all opinions are treated with respect. If someone has an opinion that is not grounded in reason then it is our obligation as moral enlightened people to point this out to them. Treating them with dignity and respect only perpetuates their foolishness and lack of reason. By shouting them down; you are helping them to understand the flaws in their reasoning. If an opinion is truly based upon reason; it will withstand the criticism. This is why the Rightwings attempt to shout down the left failed so miserably.
Good luck convincing your wife.
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
Ha, ha. Guess that poster never had a serious relationship.
What Obama needs to do now is restore the West's credibility. The year 2009 was kicked off with a criminal violation of international law and human rights in Gaza. World leaders of so-called civilized countries sat and watched as women and children were being massacred. Even when they made an effort to convene at the Security Council and work out the terms of the ceasefire, Israel thumbed its nose at those leaders.
If anything, the US, the UK, France, and Germany have shown that they are morally bankrupt.
No longer, can any of these countries preach to the world about human rights, or democracy or international law.
At this point, they're going to have to earn it back, if they ever had it in the first place.
I seem to recall a dictator who massacred a minority within his own state, gassed them and was later tried and hanged for his crimes.
Why is it that Saddam Hussein is put on trial for said crimes, while Israeli leaders like Olmert are given a free pass?
Why is it that Sudan's president Al-Bashir is put on trial for crimes against Humanity for his government's complicity in the genocide in Darfur, but Israel's Sharon gets off scot-free despite being named responsible by an Israeli commission of the massacre at Sabra and Shatila, Lebanon in 1982?
The so-called West, can no longer claim the moral high ground. It will have to earn it.
and what do you mean "so-called" West. What else would you call it considering its location vis a vis East Timor?
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
So-called West means I don't believe the world should be divided like that as that distinction doesn't hold water. But, most importantly it rings of exceptionalism and superiority, including the so-called East.
Additionally, due to globalization those distinctions have become moot in this day and age.
That was a Kissinger crime. Why is that guy walking around free.
USA, land of the hypocrites.
is to avoid the impending multi-million-dollar lawsuits. One more flaming bag of shit Bush has left on Obama's doorstep.
I thought the problem with Guantanamo was the people being held without trial.
There were now trials, in a special court set up to try cases where the defense could not see the secret evidence. The non-secret part of the evidence some did obtain was often the result of torture.
Well, I guess that's progress over no trial.
A lawsuit by Maher Arar was thrown out, apparently because our "justice" system has to act in Fascist lockstep to whatever perverted crim inal administration is running the country.
Maher Arar should have his day in court, and an official apology from the US Congress, and President Obama. The thugs who deported him to Syria should be fired and prosecuted (or their superiors should).
Think it will happen? I'm more hopeful now.
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