OneWorld.net (U.S.)

NEW YORK, Nov 22 (OneWorld) - Rights advocacy groups are calling for President-elect Barack Obama to shut down the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay soon after he takes charge of the White House in January. The call comes on the heels of the latest court victory for detainees held in the notorious U.S. prison camp for years without charge.

A January protest outside the Supreme Court urging the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison camp. © Center for Global Development"We urge President-elect Obama to turn his words into action within the first 100 days and demonstrate his commitment to meeting the United States' international obligations," said Rob Freer of the human rights organization Amnesty International.

Last Sunday, in an interview with CBS television Obama reiterated his intention to close Guantanamo, but did not explain how and when he would do so. He added: "I have said repeatedly that America doesn't torture. And I am going to make sure that we don't torture."

In a statement, Freer described Obama's statement as an "important step in the right direction," but urged the president-elect to prohibit torture and put an end to all unlawful detentions by issuing an executive order without delay.

During the seven years of the United States' so-called "war on terror," President George W. Bush has not only continued to defend the indefinite detention of Guantanamo prisoners, but also justified abusive practices by U.S. officials that experts on human rights law referred to as torture.

"Bush said the U.S. would not torture, but the use of water-boarding and other enhanced interrogative techniques against detainees held in secret CIA custody and the torture of detainees in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantanamo have told a different story," Freer said.

"Today, the courts have restored checks and balances to U.S. government detentions."
- Jennifer Daskal, Human Rights WatchCurrently, there are more than 200 foreign nationals being held at the Guantanamo prison on suspicions of involvement in terrorist activities. Many of them are believed to have suffered from torture at the hands of U.S. military investigators.

Although the fate of most of these prisoners still hangs in balance, recent developments suggest that their situation is likely to change soon.

On Friday, a federal court ordered the release of five prisoners who have been held at Guantanamo without charge for nearly seven years. In its ruling, the court found that the government had no evidence to justify the continued detention of the prisoners.

The ruling comes just a month after another U.S. federal judge ordered the release of 17 detainees of Chinese Uighur descent who had also been held for nearly seven years, and had been cleared of any wrongdoing four years ago. [The justice department has appealed that ruling, and the men remain at Guantanamo.]

In June, the Supreme Court first ruled that detainees at Guantanamo have the right to challenge their detentions in civilian U.S. courts.

Another advocacy group, Human Rights Watch (HRW), welcomed the court ruling and demanded the Bush administration immediately arrange for the return to Bosnia of the five men ordered to be set free by the court.

"Today, the courts have restored checks and balances to U.S. government detentions," said Jennifer Daskal, a legal expert at HRW. "After seven long years, the courts have finally been able to rule on the Bush administration's claim of unchecked authority to detain."

According to the court ruling, the U.S. government only had evidence warranting continued detention against one of the six petitioners, Balkacem Bensayah. 

Bensayah and the five other petitioners were arrested in Bosnia-Herzegovina on suspicion of plotting to bomb the U.S. embassy in Sarajevo in late 2001. They were also accused of traveling to Afghanistan to fight against the United States.

In Bensayah's case, the court ruled that there was evidence that he had acted as a facilitator for Al-Qaeda and the government could continue to detain him without charge. His lawyers said they would appeal the ruling.

HRW's Daskal believes there is no justification to keep Bensayah in prison without charge. "If he aided Al-Qaeda, he should be tried in federal court," she said. "These men have been in Guantanamo for seven years too long."

For his part, the federal judge made clear that he expected the government to act expeditiously to secure the release of the five prisoners he ordered free. He also urged the government not to appeal the ruling, saying "seven years is enough."

In a statement, Daskal called for the Bush administration to "heed the court's ruling" and immediately arrange their return to Bosnia.

Some human rights groups that have been demanding the closure of Guantanamo for the past several years are now calling on Obama to set up an independent commission of inquiry to probe abuses that have been committed by the United States in the "war on terror."

"[It's a] sad and disturbing fact that the United States has authorized and justified the use of torture and other unlawful practices in the name of national security," said Amnesty's Freer, whose group is in favor of an inquiry into the cases of torture of prisoners

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