Bush’s Shame, Obama’s Stain
Published in Frankfurter Rundschau
(Germany) on 25 April 2011
by Dietmar Ostermann (link to
original)
The Guantanamo files just released by WikiLeaks illustrate America’s capriciousness and lack of conscience under George W. Bush.
Even if the United States had really only imprisoned top terrorists and war criminals at Guantanamo, it still would have been scandalous because they too are entitled to fair trials. But the Taliban’s foot soldiers and hangers-on were dragged in as well, along with some who were innocent. What else can one call it when an Afghan shepherd is flown halfway around the globe and thrown into prison only because he had the misfortune to be in the immediate neighborhood when a bomb was detonated? America wasn’t choosy about who got locked up.
The WikiLeaks disclosures dating from George W. Bush’s administration show the capriciousness and lack of conscience displayed by a world power that believed it was above the rule of law. A lot of what was disclosed had long been suspected, and some of it was already known. Guantanamo’s history shouldn’t be rewritten. 172 prisoners are still incarcerated there. The man in charge of these prisoners is now Barack Obama. Even if the president had made an honest effort to close the prison camp, the fact remains: Guantanamo is now a stain on his administration.
Even if the United States had really only imprisoned top terrorists and war criminals at Guantanamo, it still would have been scandalous because they too are entitled to fair trials. But the Taliban’s foot soldiers and hangers-on were dragged in as well, along with some who were innocent. What else can one call it when an Afghan shepherd is flown halfway around the globe and thrown into prison only because he had the misfortune to be in the immediate neighborhood when a bomb was detonated? America wasn’t choosy about who got locked up.
The WikiLeaks disclosures dating from George W. Bush’s administration show the capriciousness and lack of conscience displayed by a world power that believed it was above the rule of law. A lot of what was disclosed had long been suspected, and some of it was already known. Guantanamo’s history shouldn’t be rewritten. 172 prisoners are still incarcerated there. The man in charge of these prisoners is now Barack Obama. Even if the president had made an honest effort to close the prison camp, the fact remains: Guantanamo is now a stain on his administration.
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