In another huge blow to the current United States Presidency, a federal judge ordered the release of 17 Chinese Muslims held at the United States military prison in Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. District Judge Ricardo Urbina said there was no evidence that the detainees were “enemy combatants,” much less a security risk to the United States. They have been held at Guantanamo for almost seven years without a formal charge against them. The law according to the United States Constitution prohibits indefinite detention without cause – something quite frequent in Guantanamo.

The Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp has been the subject of controversy since its inception. It is has been operated by the Joint Task Force Guantanamo since 2002 in the United States Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. Since the Afghanistan War, 775 “identified” detainees have been brought to the facility, of this number, more than half or approximately 420, have been released without charge. Those released cried forced drugging, religious persecution and torture in the form of beatings, sleep deprivation, prolonged constraint in uncomfortable positions, prolonged hooding, sexual and cultural humiliation, forced injections, and other physical and psychological mistreatment. Of course the United States government has denied doing all of these.

“I was trying to kill myself,” said 20 year old Shah Muhammad, a Pakistani who was captured in Afghanistan in November 2001. He was handed over to American soldiers and flown to Guantanamo in January 2002. “I tried four times, because I was disgusted with my life.”

As of May 2008, approximately 270 detainees remain there, including the 17 Chinese Muslims. These men belong to an ethnic group from Xinjiang province in western China called Uyghurs or Uighurs. They were living in a camp in Afghanistan when the United States bombing campaign began in October of 2001. They fled for their lives to the mountains where they were captured and detained by Pakistani authorities, who then handed them over to the United States. As early as 2003, the Pentagon had already determined that the Uyghurs should be released, as they were “No longer enemy combatants” – a Guantanamo term for detainees whose Combatant Status Review Tribunal determined they have not been classified as “enemy combatants.” According to reports, the United States has been unable to find a country willing to accept them. This has always been the reason given to those who have been cleared and have been waiting for years to be released. The Uyghurs want to come to the United States.

District Judge Ricardo Urbina ordered the detainees be brought to his courtroom for a hearing on Friday, and scheduled another one for next week to determine the conditions of their release. This is the first time a federal court had ever ordered the release into the United States of any Guantanamo detainee. The Bush administration argued that federal judges do not have the authority to order their release into United States soil.

“Today’s ruling presents serious national security and separation of powers concerns and raises unprecedented legal issues,” said Justice Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse.

The Justice Department already filed a request on Tuesday night for a stay with the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington. They also have another option of appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court. They said that they are continuing efforts to find an appropriate country to which the detainees could be sent.

“The district court’s ruling, if allowed to stand, could be used as precedent for other detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, including sworn enemies of the United States suspected of planning the attacks of 9/11, who may also seek release into our country,” said White House spokeswoman.

Many Muslim Uyghurs seek greater autonomy for the Xinjiang region and some want independence. Beijing is against this campaign and calls their efforts as violent separatist activities. Therefore, the United States can’t send them back to China, too. In 2006, the United States released five previous Uyghurs from Guantanamo to seek asylum in Albania. Lawyers for the Uyghurs said they would likely settle in Tallahassee in Florida and /or the Washington D.C. area, where religious and community leaders have already offered them support by promising housing and work.

]]> http://www.warchat.org/news-america/chinese-muslims-in-guantanamo-bay-to-be-released-to-the-united-states.html/feed http://www.warchat.org/news-asia/lee-kuan-yew-%e2%80%9cthere-is-conspiracy%e2%80%a6%e2%80%9d.html http://www.warchat.org/news-asia/lee-kuan-yew-%e2%80%9cthere-is-conspiracy%e2%80%a6%e2%80%9d.html#comments Sat, 12 Jul 2008 07:44:19 +0000 tagabukid http://www.warchat.org/?p=1059

Lee: “There is a conspiracy to do us in. Why?…They see us as a threat.”

SINGAPORE – The former Prime Minister and the founding father of Singapore stated that the country is the target of a conspiracy by human rights groups. Singapore is continuously being criticized for its style of governance.

“There is a conspiracy to do us in. Why?…They see us as a threat,” The Straits Times quoted Lee Kuan Yew saying.

Lee stated in a dialogue that the unprecedented economic growth of Singapore has sparked the curiosity of some Chinese and Russians, and has prompted them to visit and study the small but highly progressive country.

A group of international lawyers recently said that Singapore does not pass the international standards for political and human rights. The group also expressed doubts on the autonomy of the nation’s judiciary.

“Who are they? Have they ever run a country, created jobs for community and given them a life? We have and we know what it requires,” Lee was quoted.

When asked whether Singapore needed a Western-style liberal democracy to be successful, responded:

“Different people have different cultures and forge different consensus and seek different solutions to their problems.”

Lee Kuan Yew presently sits as the Minister Mentor of Singapore. His son, Lee Hsien Loong, is the country’s Prime Minister.

The economic stability and competitiveness of Singapore is widely attributed to the nation’s strict laws against political activism.

Above: Troops playing against the perils in war-torn Afghanistan (Photo: www.hqusareur.army.mil)

The number of US and NATO troops killed in Afghanistan in May and June has surpassed that of Iraq. Taliban offensives have considerably risen and have become more dangerous. Experts say that the insurgents in Afghanistan are getting stronger thus it could be an alarming sign on the part of the US/NATO soldiers in the war-torn country.

United States Defense Secretary Robert Gates has reported that Afghanistan attacks in May have killed more soldiers than in Iraq, with death counts for the month reaching 22 soldiers while the death toll in Iraq dropped at 21. The trend has even continued in June.

Based on a count from the Associated Press, 45 NATO troops died in Afghanistan in June. The data includes 27 US soldiers and 13 British troops. June has been considered the deadliest month since the US-led attack in Afghanistan in 2001 which overthrew the Taliban regime.

The day doesn’t end for these soldiers in Afghanistan who are even more on heightened alert against the alarmingly mounting insurgent risks (Photo: www.dnd.ca)

On the other hand, the death toll in Iraq fell at 31 in June. The count includes 29 US soldiers and 3 international troops.

The troops in Iraq are mostly from the United States while a small percentage consists of British soldiers and international peacekeepers. About half of the troops in Afghanistan are international forces and the rest are US soldiers.

The international community recently met in Paris and pledged additional $21 billion aid for Afghanistan. However, an Afghanistan expert in New York has expressed doubt on the success of the promised aid.

A different war should be won…there is this war that is entirely good and can save as many lives - a war against the disturbing realities that prevent us from living harmoniously and peacefully as human beings. (photo: liberalforum.org)

A new war should be won. A new perception should explode like the nuclear bombs we always talk about. We have heard the statement that war is never good no matter how reasonable it is. Seeing hundreds or thousands of people dying of war is never good no matter how valid such a war is. But there is this war that is entirely good and can save as many lives - a war against the disturbing realities that prevent us from living harmoniously and peacefully as human beings.

War on Race Discrimination

No skin color is ever superior to another. Racial or Color discrimination still exists in the United States today and in many other countries. Many lives have died of violence caused by racist ideas, principles, and statements. Needless to say, many hopes and dreams too have died of the same. Racism or any form of human discrimination certainly is an intangible weapon of mass destruction. This is the other war that we continue to ignore as we stick to the things that we touch and see.

Above: No skin color is ever superior to another… (Photo: www.ihmsisters.org)

War on Religious Discrimination

The best thing that a religion can have is respect to the other faiths. A relationship to a mystical or supernatural being is an extremely personal thing and should be highly regarded. The basic premise of a religion is to make the self and others better. Thus a religion that destroys does not have a place in this world. At times people who belong to a religion do awful things in the name of their faith, but we should just count them out and never judge the religion itself.

The basic premise of a religion is to make the self and others better. Thus a religion that destroys does not have a place in this world... (Photo: faithfulmilwaukeecatholic.blogspot.com)

War on Hunger for Power

Everybody knows that everything here is fleeting. Bonaparte, Hitler, Alexander the Great, and many others only seemed invincible but they couldn’t last. Like most of us, they lived the average life span and only witnessed the futility of their will. In the end, the more powerful a person is, the more difficult it is for him/her to accept the powerlessness of dying.

Bonaparte, Hitler (above), Alexander the Great, and many others only seemed invincible but they couldn’t last. Like most of us, they lived the average life span and only witnessed the futility of their will.(Photo: www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org)

Above: Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain (Photo: Charles Dharapak/AP)

Presumptive Republican Presidential candidate John McCain, like his President in Washington, does not want to softly deal with suspected Bin Laden-embracing or nuke-developing countries. For him, talking to possible terrorists is a big waste of time. He even criticizes presumptive Democratic Presidential Candidate Barrack Obama for planning a friendly stance toward those hostile countries.

Above: Democratic Presidential Candidate Barrack Obama (Photo: nativenotes.wordpress.com)

Once again, McCain is certain with what he is saying as if Bush’s war strategy yielded positive results – a war that he strongly encouraged and supported. Years after the United States started a war in Afghanistan, al-Qaeda still remains a hot news item and its leader still speaks confidently on camera against America. McCain’s irony does not just end there as the War on Iraq which he favored and still favors, continues to defeat its purpose.

Above: McCain in Iraq (Photo: www.defendamerica.mil)

Obama may have erred in his stance on Afghanistan years ago, but he saw wisdom in voting against the War on Iraq. If he plans to learn from the mistakes that he saw, then such a plan is expected of a man who uses his mind. McCain simply looks beyond what he sees, but the problem is that such “beyond” sights of this veteran senator are clearly unreal. Logic simply dictates us to learn from our past failures. If we listen to McCain and believe that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq which destroyed more innocent lives than 9/11 are not a failure, then this world would be far worse than too much.