BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo

Subject: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: GUEST,guest from NW
Date: 26 Jan 05 - 08:11 PM

this excerpt is from the guardian UK...

"Four Britons who were returned to the UK after being detained at Guantánamo Bay for up to three years were released tonight without charge, police said.

Moazzam Begg, from Birmingham, Feroz Abbasi from Croydon, south London, Martin Mubanga from Wembley, north-west London, and Richard Belmar from St John's Wood, north-west London, were all released from Paddington Green station."

so has GWB just loosed 4 evil terrorists back into the world or has he violated the legal and civil rights of 4 british citizens for 3 years?

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: GUEST
Date: 27 Jan 05 - 12:02 AM

Bush has authorised the detention and routine torture of hundreds of people in an illegal concentration camp for several years now; in contravention not just of international law (which America has always ignored when it wasn't convenient) but of US law.

The fact that a few British citizens have finally been released (without charge; obviously there was never any evidence against them that would stand up in a court of law, even in America) shows only that the fascist republican regime has finally seen fit to throw a little bone to its British poodle.

There are still a great many prisoners held at the Guantanamo gulag, illegally and without trial. The hypocricy of both governments is sickening.

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: nutty
Date: 27 Jan 05 - 02:49 AM

The 4 were arrested when they landed in England but after 24 hours of questioning by British Anti-Terrorist police (they had been interviewed by MI5 in Cuba) they were released without charge. The US still maintains that they are a threat.

That may be the case, but perhaps they are less of a threat if they are not being turned into martyrs

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 27 Jan 05 - 07:46 PM

Presumably part of the deal was that the police would go through the motions of pretending there was some reason to think they might be guilty of something.

I imagine this was a return for Blair helping Bush in the pre-election days, when he pushed the Black Watch in, to help get things ready for the attack on Falluja. The idea would be that with an election coming up, these releases might take some of the heat off. However the hundreds still in Guantanamo Bay still include a number of British residents with British families, in respect of whom the British Government has washed its hands so far as any help is concerned.

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: Hrothgar
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 04:01 AM

The Australian who was released arrived back in Australia today. Our beloved government, led by that stinking little scumbag Howard, are wetting themselves in their exertions to find something with which they can charge him.

For somebody who is a trained lawyer, Howard seems overly dedicated to the principle that if somebody has been arrested he must be guilty. What is really frightening is that he seems to have conviced many of the population of this, too.

Any bets on more retrospective legidlation?

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: GUEST,sandra in sydney
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 07:49 AM

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: GUEST,me back again
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 07:57 AM

as I was going to say before I inadvertantly submitted

I've been listening to our National radio's reports on his release & every government politican who speaks goes on about the him being a danger to the country & how they will keep him under survaillance.

I must not be as cynical as you Hrothgar, I hadn't thought of retrospective legislation, it's un-Australian. I hope you haven't given our un-Australian govt ideas.

sandra

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: GUEST,Skipy
Date: 28 Jan 05 - 03:29 PM

Another hot bed of people hiding behind the name "Guest"
Skipy

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: GUEST,LMFP
Date: 29 Jan 05 - 09:59 AM

The australian, was that the fellow named David who's dad has been working tirelessly to get him out?

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: hilda fish
Date: 30 Jan 05 - 03:21 AM

I started another thread .... at what cost this homecoming ... about the Australian coming home. I dunno, but it seems to me that all our governments are accepting the right of American to decide how we run our countries, our legislation, and our laws. In Australia I value very much the idea of equal justice for all, AND heabeous (wrong spelling!!!) corpus - innocent until proved guilty. In a world that has so many inbuilt inequities which make so many marginalised, no power, discriminated and so on, this seems like the one thing that we can work towards, believe in, and is enshrined within all of our governments. Any of us could be a 'suspected terrorist' under much of the legislation now - its only a matter of is 'they' want us and what they want to gather together to imprison - AND in most cases they don't need anything beyond a suspicion. Å suspicion is, it is clearly stated, anyone who acts or supports terrorism in any way. If you feel sorry for the bloke/s from G.Bay that can be seen as an act of support for terrorism despite the fact that none of the arrivals either to GB or Åus in actual fact has be proved to be terrorist. And David Hick's dad is a legend, a father who loves his son and loves justice, an ordinary bloke who risks imprisonment daily in his fight for his son's release. Thankfully there are many Åustralians and others who actively support him. I welcome home all the poor buggars who've suffered detention in G.Bay and pray that despite the fact that they will be harrassed, discriminated against, and probably hounded beyond endurance despite lack of evidence or a fair trial, that their lives have some happiness.

Subject: RE: BS: 4 Brits Released from Gitmo
From: Hrothgar
Date: 30 Jan 05 - 04:16 AM

Mamdouh Habib is the one who has been released, after being held by the Pakistanis, handed over to the Egyptians at American request for torture, then sent to Guantanamo for further torture and imprisonment without an iota of assistance or concern from the Australian government, because it suits their political book to pretend that he is guilty of something, nobody knows what.

David Hicks is still held and has been listed for "trial" before a military tribunal. His defence will be a military lawyer who has been appointed by the people who are going to try him, and for whom a win in court might be a career limiting move.

As I've said before, it is a bitter irony that an Australian is being tried by a kangaroo court.