“There is little question of how history will respond to Guantánamo”it
will be looked back on with condescension and bemusement. How could we
be so foolish, misguided, cruel? How we will respond is a legal
question and a political question. But it is most of all a moral
question. Will we respond with courage or cowardice? This is our
choice.”– Joseph Margulies, a lawyer challenging the indefinite detention of the prisoners at Guantánamo
On January 11th, 2002, twenty hooded and shackled men shuffled off a
plane from Afghanistan, arriving at the U.S. prison at Guantánamo. In
an attempt to sidestep the Geneva Convention protections for prisoners
of war, the Bush administration created a new category of “enemy
combatant” for these men captured in the “war on terror.”
Since that time, more than one thousand men and boys have been
imprisoned at Guantánamo. Accounts of cruel, inhuman, and degrading
treatment have been condemned by the United Nations, Human Rights Watch
and other reputable bodies. The prisoners have resorted to hunger
strikes as a way of protesting their treatment. Many have attempted
suicide; three men killed themselves on June 10th 2006. Desperation,
fear and frustration mark their confinement.
Five years later, not a single prisoner has been charged, tried or
convicted of any crime. Many have been released because no evidence has
been found against them, but more than 430 men remain in indefinite
detention without hope of release. The United States has abandoned law
and justice.
January 11th, 2007 marks five years of unjust imprisonment,
isolation, beatings, interrogation and abuse for these men. We must
say: no more. We must say: no longer. For our nation of laws, for our
democracy, for our humanity and theirs, we demand small but essential
steps to help return our nation to the best of our own traditions.
We call on the United States government to:
· Repeal the Military Commissions Act and restore Habeas Corpus.
· Charge and try or release all detainees.
· Withhold funds for the proposed $125 million construction of new military courts at Guantánamo.
· Clearly and unequivocally forbid torture and all other forms of
cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment, by the military, the CIA,
prison guards, civilian contractors, or anyone else.
· Pay reparations to current and former detainees and their families for violations of their human rights.
· Shut down Guantánamo, Abu Ghraib, Bagram and all other U.S. prisons overseas, including secret CIA detention facilities.
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In addition to the protest planned in Washington DC Jan. 11, protests and events are planned in cities across the country and around the world. Click here to find one near you. In addition to attending the protests planned, World Can’t Wait encourages you to spend the day wearing the orange jumpsuit and hood that Guantanamo detainees have to wear everyday to confront people with the reality of torture, and distribute the Call to Drive Out the Bush Regime. Click here to see how it’s done. Order orange jumpsuits and “Torture + Silence = Complicity” bumper stickers on our online store. |
We mark January 11, 2007 as a day of national shame. But we can also
mark it as a day of citizen action. How? By acting on behalf of our
fellow human beings in Guantánamo, their bereaved families and all
victims of the “war on terrorism.”
We declare January 11, 2007 an International Day of Action to Shut
Down Guantánamo. In Washington, DC we will march from the Supreme Court
to the U.S. Federal Court. At the Supreme Court, Guantánamo Lawyers and
others will address the press. Individuals will then proceed to Federal
Court, taking on the names and identities of the men in Guantánamo and
submitting Habeas petitions on their behalf. With our action and our
bodies, we will forge the path that the Center for Constitutional
Rights and other legal advocates demand on behalf of their clients.
Outside the Federal Court on Constitution Avenue, people will read
testimonies and names of prisoners, perform street theater and hand out
information. There will be solidarity demonstrations from Amsterdam to
Boise, Idaho and a National Call-In Day to Congress.
We invite you to come to Washington and participate, either as an
individual or as part of an affinity group. If travel is not an option,
join or plan an action in your own community. Around the country,
groups are planning vigils and actions at courthouses, federal building
and public squares. In other countries, the focus will be on U.S.
Embassies and military facilities. For a full list of both National and
International actions, visit www.witnesstorture.org
If you plan on coming to DC, we encourage you to form affinity
groups and be in touch with organizers ahead of time for details on the
scenario. Contact Matt Daloisio (Daloisio@earthlink.net) or Frida
Berrigan (Frida.Berrigan@gmail.com).
More information can be found at: http://www.witnesstorture.org/.
