The Rights Of Guantanamo Bay

Equalizing the constitutional rights of prisoners and the functions of the jail or prison can create great strain on not only the correctional facilities’ staff but on the inmates as well. The treatment of prisoners is typically left completely to the prudence of prison administrators and other correctional officials. With that being said, this paper will discuss the differences between harmonizing those constitutional rights of prisoners and the functions of the facility. It will also explain the rights that prisoners are required to have, and how these rights are balanced within other aspects of the correctional institution.

In August of 2002, without consulting Congress, the Bush administration changed the definition of torture by military standards to allow for previously illegal interrogation techniques. (Inside Guantanamo) Bush lost a lot of respect from American citizens for doing this on his own instead of consulting Congress because it added a lot of suspicion that he was trying to hide something. The Pentagon organized the interrogation techniques into three categories. The first one included yelling and deception techniques and the second included sensory deprivation, isolation, stress positions, extensive interrogation, hooding, clothing removal, and the use of phobias. The third and most severe category included waterboarding and even death threats. (Greenberg 221) Bush wanted justice to be served to the men who planned and carried out the deaths of thousands of innocent Americans in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He thought the families of the thousands killed that day deserved that justice. Soon after, President Bush sent 14 men to Guantanamo Bay so that justice could be served to them by the military commissions he had proposed. They were to be put under the custody of the CIA where they would get what Bush thought they deserved and thanks to the Bybee Memo, Bush had complete, unlimited power when it came to core war matters such as this. While constitutional, the actions of the Bush administration as he went behind Congress’s back and came up with a new definition for torture

Cuba, only 400 miles from Miami Fl, is an island in the Caribbean and is renowned for its excellent climate. There are beaches for swimming, scuba diving, snorkeling, fishing, and boating opportunities. The island has it’s dark secrets as well, there is Guantanamo Bay, a prison nearby, where the detainee’s right are stripped away and they are beaten daily. Closing Guantanamo Bay has been a big debate over the past few years. President Although what they are doing is technically legal, it is still unconstitutional on U.S. soil. Obama promised us that during his term he would close it. Obama has said that "Keeping this facility open is contrary to our values. It undermines our standing in the world. It is viewed as a stain on our broader record of upholding the highest standards of rule of law." Guantanamo Bay is an embarrassment to our country and has been since it opened. The camp was repeatedly criticized by human rights and humanitarian organizations all around—including Amnesty international, Human Rights Watch, and the International committee of the Red Cross—as well as by the European Union and the Organization of American States(OAS), for alleged human rights violations, including the use of various forms of torture during interrogations. We need to close Guantanamo Bay because it costs a lot of money to keep it open, it is unconstitutional, and we can contain the prisoners in the U.S.

There is a controversy involving Guantanamo bay which is should it still be kept open or should it be closed there are many reasons.Why people want to keep it open and many reasons why the people want to close it.Is Guantanamo as important as it use to be are we still in as much of a risk as we were during the era of 911 to need Guantanamo bay well here are some of the issues explaining if Guantanamo should or should not stay open.

Hamdi et al. v. Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense, et al. could prove the undoing of the Bush administration’s legal defense of the abuses at Guantanamo Bay. In this case, four British citizens are suing Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld as well as a host of Army and Air Force Generals and policy apparatchiks for allegedly authorizing the use of torture in Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay. The four were captured in Afghanistan, either by Americans or America’s ally, the Northern Alliance, and transported to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba where they were held for over two years. Their status there was not as enemy combatant, which guaranteed them certain protections under the Geneva Convention, but rather as

POL 201 Week 5 Final Paper Civil Liberties, Habeas Corpus, and the War on Terror

Guantanamo Bay in Cuba houses some of the most dangerous people. The people being held have ranged in committing various crimes. What makes Guantanamo Bay well known is how the time period a detainee has spent in prison without a trial. While in prison for an extensive period of time, a detainee is bound to receive discipline for not following the guards. There are often a variety of different methods that the guards use to teach discipline to the detainees. All who follow Guantanamo Bay as institution often criticizes the measures taken. What makes Guantanamo Bay an ironic place to start this journey is because Guantanamo Bay is at the center of attention to a very important, controversial law passed in 2006. The controversial law was

The United States military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has been occupied by over 700 Middle Eastern men suspected of terrorism since 2002. It has been home to some of the most heinous suspected terrorist to ever walk on this Earth. What to do with this military base, has been a major source of conflict within our nation and with other nations for over a decade, with no real reasoning substantial enough to close the base. Although our government has come forward and declared that interrogation methods used on some of the detainees has been unethical and has broken some United States laws. But closing Guantanamo Bay is a task that should not be pursued, because it causes more problems to our countries people, our diplomatic and

Following the 9/11 attacks and the Congressional statement giving President Bush the power to seek out and detain terrorists, the Bush Administration asserted the need for an area of detention for these non-state actors. Certain criteria, however, had to be met to satisfy the administration and overall public safety of American citizens. These criteria include a desolate location out of U.S. Territory as to prevent detainee escapes and allow loopholes in treatment of detainees and length of detention. On the Guantanamo Bay U.S. Naval Base, these criteria were fully met: it is surrounded by water, as to prevent

On September 11, 2001, the world as Americans where familiar with changed forever. As one of the world’s great super power nations Americans were sure that no one would ever raise a hand against them. Even before that day attacks made on American were small, or thwarted, or the culprits were quickly named and brought to justice. The terrorists who attacked American that day changed the game book, changed the way Americans felt about their safety and began a war that has no real face, no easily identifiable agenda, and no quick ending in sight. To protect the country President George W. Bush signed into law the Patriot Act and help create the office of Homeland Security. Guantanamo Bay was deemed the place to hold those arrested for

This paper will explore three separate cases, providing facts about the apprehension and detention of enemy combatants, assessing the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, and will explain whether any rights were denied or granted in contrast with each other. Anyone engaging in aggressive or hostile behavior towards a country is held to several political and constitutional legalities as explored in the three following cases.

As part of the “war on terror,” the US began a revolutionary practice of holding "enemies" in military detention without charge and without according them basic rights. Guantanamo Bay is a notorious United States military prison, known for the frequent mistreatment of its inmates. Hundreds of people have gone in and out of GTMO, but none were afforded the rights granted to regular American prisoners. These inmates have spent years holed up in a secretive compound, where some aren't even cognizant of the charges against them. Furthermore, these detainees have reported incidents of abuse and torture, direct violations of the eighth amendment. Bush appointed officials, like Susan Crawford, have conceded that torture occurred at GTMO, validating claims made by those imprisoned. This controversial detention center is infamous internationally, as a 2005 Amnesty International report called the facility the "Gulag of our times.” The U.S. government opened this base as a holding center for the “world’s most dangerous criminals,” and perpetuates its existence to ensure national security. Guantanamo Bay may not seem relevant to most Americans, but its existence is a blatant violation of the Constitution, and foreshadows more encroachment upon the personal liberties enjoyed by

Guantanamo Bay, though started with good intentions, only highlights America’s negative side. Marine Major General Michael Lehnert, who played a significant role in the opening of Guantanamo, has drastically changed his opinion and said that it, “Validates every negative perception of the U.S.” (Sutton 1). One example of this occurred in 2006, when President Bush justified the use of “physical coercion” (torture) during interrogations (Fetini 1). Some of these torture methods include isolation, beatings, sleep deprivation, and general abuse. Other tactics such as disrespect for Islamic symbols or sexual provocation are used to encourage stress in detainees (Bloche 1). These immoral methods led to an international outcry. It was later remarked that the Cuban territory upon which Guantanamo is located is being used as a “concentration camp” of sorts (Fetini 1). Guantanamo and its unethical values are being recognized by nations around the world, displaying America in a bad light.

In the United States, one of the major methods in obtaining crucial information has been through the use of Guantanamo Bay. While many have condemned of the torture that is believed to occur there, not only does Guantanamo Bay comply with national and international standards, but it also complies with Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions (Meese 1) which states

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is originally a naval base that was once used to house detention facilities for Haitian and Cuban refugees fleeing to the United States. It was also used as a refueling station for Navy ships. It was then converted into a high level detention facility to house enemy troops captured in the War on Terror campaign by Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfield. It has three main camps that house the prisoners. These prisoners of war were later referred to as enemy combatants. They were excluded from the prisoner of war statutes of the Geneva Convention because of their involvement in a foreign terrorist organization and therefore earning themselves the title of terrorists. The Guantanamo Bay Detention Center served as the perfect location to send these terrorists. It allowed the United States to strip them of any due process or protection that is provided by US law. Due to its location, being in foreign territory they are only subjected to military law. They are close enough for them to be monitored without interference of intentional agencies or international oversight. Furthermore, the US Government is holding these men without due process because they are deemed too dangerous to be released into the public because of their associations with terrorist organizations and possession of valuable information relating to National Security such as location of key members of a terrorist groups, whereabouts. However, the United States cannot release those