With 14 key suspects from Guantanamo Bay starting their hearings this week, has the American Government done enough to convince the world they have acted in good faith?
With new hearings opening in Guantanamo Bay this week, Islam is again thrust to the forefront of the news as George Bush and his cronies decide whether the individuals concerned can be classed as enemy combatants.
The courts won’t be deciding whether they are guilty or innocent of any crimes because presumably it’s still too early to make any decision. And the hearings will be held in private, with one possible reason being that they will help reveal details of arrests and interrogation. The suspects are also denied defence lawyers to argue on their behalf, with decisions being made purely by a panel of three military officials.
What I’m wondering is if these people aren’t found to be enemy combatants, a convenient term made up by Bush and Co., what will happen to them? Being Muslims and having been detained for so long without charge, will they be able to claim religious persecution?
For such a forward-thinking and apparently developed administration, it seems as though the US Government will need to convince a wide audience that this war on terror is more than just a war on Islam and a convenient removal of key Muslims from the Middle East.
