Why Brazil must help to close Guantanamo
Article by Laura Waisbich e Eric Lewis to Folha de S. Paulo
By Eric Lewis and Laura Waisbich
In a few days, Dilma Rousseff will be travelling to the United States to meet with her counter-part President Barack Obama. That is a unique opportunity to show Brazil’s willingness to be part of the global push to solve one of the most tragic and lingering humanitarian crisis in our continent: the continued existence of the Guantanamo prison – an American military base in Cuba rehabilitated into a detention camp for Muslim men by George W. Bush after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The US Ambassador in Brasilia stated in her article at Folha that human rights is one of the topics that the two countries should work together during the presidents’ meeting. There is no way to talk about human rights without touching Guantánamo.
In its more than 13 years of existence almost 800 men have been held in Guantáanamo. Just 4 have been convicted in Military Commissions. 116 men remain there. Who are they? 51 have been cleared for release, having been found not to present any security risk to the United States or its allies. All of these 51 men have been cleared for at least the last 6 years, many much longer. Never charged with a crime, many men simply happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. So why are these men still shackled to the floor in a remote offshore supermax facility that costs the US government $3 million per year per prisoner?
The answer is simple. The Obama administration affirms that cannot resettle these people in the United States because Congress has irresponsibly prohibited it. Some men cannot come back to their home countries, due to fear of persecution and torture, or because their country is considered not safe anymore. This is, for example, the case of all Yemenis in GTMO whose country has descended into civil war. And the US Government therefore has to convince enough third countries to resettle detainees. Six US government agencies (including the FBI & the CIA) have unanimously cleared these men, judging them to present no material security risk, so it is pure politics that keeps them at Guantanamo.
The prison at Guantanamo has become a symbol of America’s panicked abandonment of the rule of law after September 2001, combining arbitrary detentions with the use of institutionalized torture. With respect to the men who have not been cleared, they should be charged or released. One should never permit people never charged with any crime to be detained forever based on some hypothetical fear of future dangerousness. Condoning arbitrary detention erodes the rule of law. This temptation must be outweighed by the geopolitical error and moral calumny of detaining Muslim men without charge and without hope.
It is time for Brazil, a country that is struggling to set right the wrongdoings of its authoritarian past, and has thus constitutionally committed itself to advance rights domestically and in its foreign relations, to do the right thing and resettle detainees who have been cleared for release. A diverse group of 22 countries around the world has done so, ending the legal limbo of these men and offering them a chance to begin a new life. Pope Francis has issued a strong statement in support of finding “humanitarian solutions” for the prisoners at Guantánamo.
Uruguay has taken six former detainees. Oman has recently taken detainees and other countries in the Middle East should offer to provide safe and secure resettlement options in areas where language, religion and culture will all be familiar. European countries have also taken about 50 ex-detainees.
Countries that have resettled men have found that the much anticipated fuss, fear-mongering and media hype about former GTMO-men posing security threats have either not materialised or have quickly dissipated. Instead, men who have been incarcerated under harsh conditions without charge or trial for years, have gone about doing what they have long dreamed of: rebuilding a simple, peaceful life. The alternative to this – leaving these cleared men in Guantanamo forever – is both morally untenable and politically counterproductive.
Even though Brazil is not at the origin of this crisis, there is every reason why it should be part of the solution. It would assist President Obama in his goal of trying to close Guantánamo against the obstruction of right wing fearmongering. And it would make Brazil an important symbolic leader in the fight for liberty and tolerance. Closing Guantánamo needs to be a global priority. Dilma´s historic upcoming visit to the US offers Brazil has an excellent opportunity to play a key role in helping to end this tragedy.
Eric Lewis the chair of Reprieve US’ board and a Guantanamo lawyer
Laura Waisbich is foreign policy officer at Conectas Human Rights
