In George W. Bush’s Shadow
Published in Frankfurter Rundschau
(Germany) on 21 January 2011
by Arnd Festerling (link to
original)
Two years ago, President Barack Obama announced that he would close the Guantanamo detention facility within a year. The deadline is up and he has not kept his promise. Obama now pays the price of George W. Bush’s policy of ignoring human rights.
What a dreadful anniversary. Two years ago, Obama promised to close Guantanamo within a year. The promise he made as he took the oath of office wasn’t merely a simple act; it represented America’s return to its own constitution and to the absolute rule of law. It marked the end of George W. Bush’s policy that anything and everything was permissible in the fight against terrorism. Bush’s policies led straightaway to secret prisons, years of imprisonment without trial or conviction, solitary confinement and torture. And now Obama is obliged to pay for Bush’s policy of ignoring human rights. In view of the confessions extracted by torture, courts are unable to make fair decisions concerning inmates. At the same time, Obama cannot afford to simply turn suspected terrorists loose in society.
Guantanamo will thus continue to cast a dark shadow over Obama’s policies as well as over the whole of the United States.
What a dreadful anniversary. Two years ago, Obama promised to close Guantanamo within a year. The promise he made as he took the oath of office wasn’t merely a simple act; it represented America’s return to its own constitution and to the absolute rule of law. It marked the end of George W. Bush’s policy that anything and everything was permissible in the fight against terrorism. Bush’s policies led straightaway to secret prisons, years of imprisonment without trial or conviction, solitary confinement and torture. And now Obama is obliged to pay for Bush’s policy of ignoring human rights. In view of the confessions extracted by torture, courts are unable to make fair decisions concerning inmates. At the same time, Obama cannot afford to simply turn suspected terrorists loose in society.
Guantanamo will thus continue to cast a dark shadow over Obama’s policies as well as over the whole of the United States.