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The
Earth is Flat Award A celebration of
the inane, insipid and asinine...
web
posted June 2, 2003
Americans should expect that the rest of the world will judge
them harshly. It's one of those things you should simply deal with by ignoring
it. There are limits, however, and Australia's Herald Sun crossed the line
recently with a shocking story about the al-Qaida and Taliban prisoners held
at Guantanamo Bay.
"US plans death camp" read the headline on May 26. When people
read the words "death camp" they automatically picture those familiar images
of the death camps of the Second World War. The camps were little more than
factory-sized murder plants. And it would appear that Guantanamo Bay will be
no different.
Actually it will. The first two paragraphs of the story give
away that "death camp" is a descriptive favored by the Herald
Sun not for its
accuracy but for its eye catching properties. I'll include the rest of the
story as an editorial on bias.
The US has floated plans to turn Guantanamo Bay into a death
camp, with its own death row and execution chamber.
Prisoners would be tried, convicted and executed without leaving its boundaries,
without a jury and without right of appeal, The Mail on Sunday newspaper reported
yesterday.
The plans were revealed by Major-General Geoffrey Miller, who is in charge
of 680 suspects from 43 countries, including two Australians.
The suspects have been held at Camp Delta on Cuba without charge for 18
months.
General Miller said building a death row was one plan. Another was to have
a permanent jail, with possibly an execution chamber.
The Mail on Sunday reported the move is seen as logical by the US, which
has been attacked worldwide for breaching the Geneva Convention on prisoners
of war since it established the camp at a naval base to hold alleged terrorists
from Afghanistan.
But it has horrified human rights groups and lawyers representing detainees.
They see it as the clearest indication America has no intention of falling
in line with internationally recognised justice.
The US has already said detainees would be tried by tribunals, without juries
or appeals to a higher court. Detainees will be allowed only US lawyers.
British activist Stephen Jakobi, of Fair Trials Abroad, said: "The
US is kicking and screaming against any pressure to conform with British
or any other kind of international justice."
American law professor Jonathan Turley, who has led US civil rights group
protests against the military tribunals planned to hear cases at Guantanamo
Bay, said: "It is not surprising the authorities are building a death
row because they have said they plan to try capital cases before these tribunals.
"This camp was created to execute people. The administration has no
interest in long-term prison sentences for people it regards as hard-core
terrorists."
Britain admitted it had been kept in the dark about the plans.
A Downing St spokesman said: "The US Government is well aware of the
British Government's position on the death penalty."
So what have we learned from this news story? If you're an American, you probably
already know.
The
Vinegar in Freedom Award
There is an old Serbian proverb
that says vinegar in freedom tastes better than honey in slavery. This award is
meant for events and people Enter Stage Right considers to be positive.
Check back soon for a new Vinegar in Freedom Award!
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considered for the Earth is Flat Award or the Vinegar in Freedom Award? E-mail
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