Right now the majority of the 166 men held at Guantanomo have been there for more than 11 years without being charged with a crime or given a fair trial, with their sentences being indefinite. Southcom Commander General Kelly acknowledged before Congress that the situation at Guantanamo is “devastating.” In early February, to protest their detention and brutal treatment, the prisoners engaged in a large-scale hunger strike. The Center for Constitutional Rights, Witness Against Torture, World Can’t Wait are just a few of the groups who are asking people to take action. Over the past month, many people have joined these prisoners by fasting themselves, writing letters, and making phone calls. The conditions in Guantanamo are deplorable and the financial costs and costs to our standing in the world are too high. April 11 is/has been the National Day of Action to Close Guantanamo & End Indefinite Detention. If you have missed this call to action, I encourage you to:
- • Call President Obama: 202-455-1111 and ask that the facility be closed
- • Call the U.S. Southern Command to decry the conditions at Guantanamo: 305-437-1213
- • Call the Department of Defense: 703-571-3343
It is hard to care about people who may have acted out against the US. With no charge, detaining them and holding them in such “devastating” conditions is treating them the same way that we condemn and fight other countries for doing. We must look at our own borders and make sure we are holding ourselves to the same morals we want other countries to hold as their standard.
Isabel Chiquoine
Walnut Street, Devens
