Justice for all

Through my studies in the political science field, I’ve studied both Guantanamo Bay and the Gacaca process of post-conflict restorative justice in Rwanda in quite a bit of detail. Well, you might ask, what in the world do these two issues have in common? In essence, both alleged terrorists in Guantanamo and those on trial (mostly, or all, Hutus accused of participating in the genocide) in the Gacaca courts aren’t guaranteed a fair trial. In Guantanamo, it’s common knowledge that the accused are only tried by military commissions, generally have not had access to legal counsel or habeas corpus, and were often tortured in prison (although this is all changing).

Similarly, alleged perpetrators and genocidaires who appear before the grassroots and community-based Gacaca courts do not have access to legal representation, are tried by community members - often leading to unfair sentences imposed based on the balance of power in that particular community or region, and are sentenced by judges who mostly have no legal background.

But while issues like Guantanamo and Gacaca have garnered significant worldwide attention - primarily because of their relation to “popular” or “sexy” issues like national security and genocide - the truth is that millions of people around the world are suffering the same fate, but are mostly ignored by the world.

Most people who are imprisoned in much of the developing world - and frankly many in the United States as well - are not guaranteed legal counsel at the expense of the state; thus, they end up in jail for years without even seeing the inside of a court or hearing what they are being charged with. Arbitrary arrests are common. Prison conditions are horrible and unsanitary, with lack of basic hygiene, systematic overcrowding, and the spread of infectious diseases. In some countries like Zimbabwe, prisoners starve to death due to lack of sufficient food. And the tortures of prisoners in Guantanamo that so horrified the American public? The same brutal torture tactics are a commonality in most countries today, and are widespread as interrogation tactics.

In addition, while fair trials has become a big issue/controversy for alleged terrorists and genocidaires, most people around the world who are denied access to legal counsel and who are tortured in prison are suffering for far less severe crimes - such as robbery. Despite this, their plight receives little or no attention from the international community.

When are people going to realize this is a problem? That torture and lack of fair trials & legal representation are not limited to GITMO or Gacaca, but are problems for millions of people around the world?

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.” The right to a fair trial is also found in article 14(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. When are we, the international community, going to begin making sure these laws are actually enforced in practice?

Not just alleged terrorists or genocidaires require fair trials.  Countless poor individuals who have been caught up in the system and are effectively “invisible people” also deserve fair trials, and it’s time we started doing something about this.

I was glad to read this great article today about America’s little known immigrant detention system, and simultaneously was shocked at the statistics.

According to an official Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) database, almost 19,000 immigrants out of a total 32,000 who are currently detained within the U.S. “had no criminal conviction, not even for illegal entry or low-level crimes like trespassing.” More than 400 of those with no criminal record had been imprisoned for at least a year; a dozen had been held for at least three years, while an immigrant from China had been behind bars for over five years.

The U.S. Supreme Court had ruled in 2001 that immigrants had to be either deported or released within 6 months of having their case decided. But this deadline is often ignored. And moreover, since 2003 especially as a reaction to the war on terror, Congress doubled the funds used to detaining immigrants.

But what is perhaps most unsettling is that a large number of these prisoners are not illegal immigrants. In fact, many are asylum seekers who had come to the U.S. to escape persecution in their home country, or even longtime residents who are well on their way to becoming permanent residents. One detainee was an honors student who spent almost two years in prison just because her parents’ asylum claim had been denied years before. She had done absolutely nothing wrong, but the system failed to recognize her parents asylum claim and she ended up being punished unnecessarily for years.

Many other detainees are immigrants who cannot be deported because their home countries won’t accept them, or people who have been caught in the complex legal system without a lawyer to fight for their release or provide them with advice.

Apparently the ICE believes that detaining immigrants helps ensure that they attend court hearings and leave the country when they are ordered to do so. The ICE apparently also uses detention as a tactic to force the immigrants into compliance; after people have been detained for months, they have little motivation and energy to continue fighting the charges against them. Detention is used to pressure the detainees and force them to give in quickly. But detaining immigrants indefinitely without even granting them access to a lawyer or to a fair trial is a high price to pay for ensuring they attend court hearings. It is a violation of their basic constitutional rights and civil liberties, and officials should attempt to avoid such detention at all costs rather than use it as a “terror tactic” to implement their policies. This shows just how much America’s criminal justice and immigration systems are in need of critical reform.

It’s also a reminder that although there are high profile situations taking place constantly in human rights law, most recently with the ICC’s arrest warrant for Al-Bashir as well as the debates surrounding Guantanamo Bay, we must not forget that people are being detained and mistreated right here in the United States. It is a reminder to remember the human rights abuses going on daily behind the scenes, right in our backyards - and to not forget them in the face of the more publicized issues we hear about everyday in the news.

Breakthrough is a great organization working to raise awareness of “homeland guantanamos” - the harsh immigrant detention system within the U.S. Click here to check out their campaign.

Recently, I watched an excellent interview of Kevin Jon Heller of Opinio Juris, a professor of international law as well as a defense adviser for Radovan Karadzic. Karadzic is a former Bosnian Serb leader who is currently being indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for counts of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. He is accused of genocide - namely, ethnic cleansing campaigns in Bosnia, as well as the 1995 massacre in Srebenica when Serb troops murdered about 8,000 Muslim men. Karadzic has been accused of some of the worst crimes in history — and Heller is responsible for defending him. The interview compares defending Karadzic with defending Hitler and asks: Would you defend Hitler?

This point is fascinating because it’s something people have been questioning for ages. Why - and how can you - ethically defend someone if you know they’re guilty? The reason is the honorable institution of the fair trial. Without defending both parties involved in any case, the right to a fair trial, guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and a major civil liberty in so many countries around the world (at least on the books), is endangered. I’ve noted down the most important part of Heller’s interview below:

What really struck me was the same people who didn’t understand why I would be involved in defending a monster like Karadzic in the very next breath savagely criticized the U.S. governments for denying fair trials to the inmates at Guantanamo Bay. And I agree with the criticism of the way Guantanamo Bay detainees were treated….But it’s that blindness, that we care about giving fair trials to the accused terrorists , because I guess we think most of them are innocent, but we have no concern whatsoever with giving fair trials to someone like Dr. Karadzic. That’s what I don’t understand…The right to a fair trial extends back to the Magna Carta. This is not an optional human right that is less important than the rights of victims. I don’t think we should be prioritizing which of our human rights we want to take seriously and which  we don’t want to take seriously. To not insist upon fair trials and the right of a good defense to every accused criminal regardless of our political sympathies to them, I just think is devastating to international criminal justice in general. — Kevin Jon Heller

Being a public defender is probably one of the most difficult jobs ever. You are constantly questioned by others about the ethics of your job, and why you would even think of defending someone who has done such horrible things. But we have to think back to one of our basic human rights - the right to a fair trial. Heller makes an excellent point in stating that every criminal, regardless of the level of their crimes, deserves a fair trial. Only then can we ensure that criminal justice institutions are fair enough to save those who are in fact innocent, and to ensure the appropriate justice for those who are guilty.

So, would YOU defend Hitler?

Obama hasn’t even been President for two days, and he’s already changing the country, giving America a new face. A kinder and more benevolent face - one that says we are fair, just, and honest. He’s begun his presidency with something most human rights activists hoped for with their fists clenched and their breath ragged. And now, not only will activists around the world be taking a deep breath and exhaling - perhaps even jumping up and down, popping a bottle of champagne, or writing a blog - but the world will begin to give us more approving glances.

Obama has kept true to his promise, and today he signed executive orders directing the C.I.A. to shut down its remaining secret prisons - and to close down the Guantánamo Bay detention center within one year. This is incredible; not only have NGOs like Amnesty International, the ACLU, and Human Rights Watch worked tirelessly towards this goal — beyond simply closing Guantanamo, they hoped that ending America’s flagrant disregard of human rights would be the first thing that our new President would do. And I, I remained cynical – wondering if it would indeed be first on his agenda.

But he has happily surprised me and many others I’m sure. Obama gets it. He realizes that we are campaigning not only for the rights of the detainees, many of them innocents caught up in violence and at the least, undeserving of the torture and humiliation they have faced. No, people are campaigning because Guantanamo Bay has become a symbol of America’s cruelty and utter disregard for our own constitution, that which has always been seen as representative of Freedom, Liberty, and Opportunity. Obama realizes that with a swift stroke of the pen, he can restore some of America’s good reputation in the world. And he can set the tone for his Presidency; he can set high standards for himself. He’s already closed Guantanamo on day one, and we can only expect an uphill journey from here.

But amidst the celebration, there is much left to be done. President Obama has halted the unconstitutional military commissions taking place in Guantanamo by ordering a 120-day suspension.

He has postponed some of the most important decisions to be made for 6 months. He knows its time to close the prison, but still seems uncertain what is to be done with the detainees.

“There are … ambiguities in the orders regarding treatment of certain detainees that could either be the result of the swiftness with which these orders were issued or ambivalence within the Obama administration. We are hopeful that as the process unfolds and gets clarified, there will be no doubt that detainees must either be charged, prosecuted and convicted or they need to be released,” – Anthony D. Romero, ACLU Executive Director

Right now? It’s all still a bit of a mess. Some prisoners are to be transferred back to their home countries to be tried - how can we guarantee that they will not suffer torture again in foreign prisons? And what about those deemed to ‘dangerous’ to even try in American courts? Or those who cannot be brought to trial for fear of revealing intelligence secrets? And for those who were tortured, humiliated in Guantanamo - what is to be done with them? If we are to be fair, we cannot admit their tainted guilty pleas, their bloodstained testimonies. We have to think of new solutions, be creative, and solve this problem quickly.

Obama has made his symbolic move, and found a way to garner quick praise. But time well tell whether this symbol will transform into substance. I respect him immensely for this single act — but I’ll respect him all the more if he can untangle the mess Bush left for us.

6 months? President Obama: I say we can do it faster. Let’s make it happen.

So yes – I’m jumping on the election bandwagon too. To be honest I rarely state my opinions – in public – because I am quite afraid of being shot down by someone more experienced and knowledgeable than me. I dislike debate and argument and prefer to remain meek and silent. But it seems a shame not to reflect on the history that has been happening all around us over the past few days, that has been enveloping us as a living, breathing entity. Something tangible we are a part of - a movement greater than ourselves - something to change the course of history altogether. Today has been an amazing day – the dawn of a new era with change in the air – if I’m not being too grand. I must say that I was – like so many other young Americans out there – so very proud of my country for electing President Obama to the White House! When I listened to his victory speech at about 6:00 in the am, I was shaken not by how majestic his words were – but more at the humility in his voice, and the sober acknowledgments he made about the future. I was glad to hear him take in reality, and also emphasize the steep road ahead of him. Still, it made me incredibly proud of America when I saw how Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia – all turned to Obama. It made me incredibly proud, though I am in England, to think of how young people across the country showed up to vote, take a stake in the political process, and make our democracy a reality again. It made me extremely inspired to think of how Obama has mobilized the youngest generation – perhaps in the past the most disillusioned and apathetic regarding politics – to play an active role in their country’s future, and become hopeful and even wildly optimistic about our country’s future. I am most impressed with Obama’s tremendous charisma and strength, and his persuasive power when it comes to making people believe in politics – something that has failed the people over and over again – in a time when our country is in utter economic disarray. If Obama can inspire people to believe in a failed institution like politics at a time of such crisis, I am confident he can accomplish so much more. Yes, I was a Clinton supporter, but I wholeheartedly embraced the Obama campaign when I saw how much he inspired people – and inspired me. I love our country’s democracy and last night made me believe in it – all over again

I am incredibly excited for the future of our country, because I know that whatever change Obama makes – it will be better than anything that we would experience under John McCain. I know that doesn’t sound very substantial, but I feel that it is important to also keep our expectations from soaring wildly out of control – before we pin way too many hopes on one political figure and perhaps, become disappointed. At the same time, words are not enough. I do hope that Obama does begin to act – the right way, the right time. There are so many things that need to be done to put our country together, and I hope he knows where to begin. I hope he begins now and does not delay action and “change” any longer. We need his strong leadership, when the entire world is waiting on America’s next move. Something that is key to me is the way we are viewed by the international community. America has been on the decline internationally, and we have been accumulating nothing but negativity and dislike in other countries. Having been in the UK and speaking to young people from all across Europe, I am seeing firsthand how much our reputation is suffering (rightly) in the eyes of other nations. There is so much to be changed if we can renew the faiths of countries across the globe in the U.S. We have so much power, and it cannot be abused. Electing Obama has been a first step in repairing our tarnished reputation – but Obama has to take this forward.

I will not reiterate the main issues – economy, politics in Washington, health care. We have all heard about these issues time and time again throughout this election. But I would like to say a few words about things I care about. It was a promise on his behalf, and I hope Pres. Obama will stick to it and close down Guantanamo Bay very soon. He needs to act quickly because prisoners have been languishing in that hell hole – some without even being told why they were arrested – in a gross violation of their rights for over 5 years. I know there are so many more pressing issues, such as the economic crisis, but this is something that we need to act on to show our leadership in the world, and to free those who are innocent. It is imperative that Pres. Obama transfer the prisoners either to be tried in their home countries if they will not be in danger, or to be tried within the U.S. federal court system. Some have argued that this is dangerous, but the truth is that the federal courts are the only courts well equipped to provide fair trials to these detainees. The CSRT military tribunals currently in place at Guantanamo are complete failures when it comes to guaranteeing a fair trial. Prisoners are not guaranteed counsel, often are not even told what they are charged with, and often are unable to assert their innocence because they lack the resources to collect evidence themselves! This makes a joke out of the American judicial system, and Pres. Obama must take moves to close it down once and for all. If you were stuck in a prison for 6 years – from the age of 15 to 21 – would you want to wait another day? The short answer is no.

Another thing I hope that Obama remedies as a president is the U.S.’s position with regards to the International Criminal Court. Our policy with the ICC is absolutely shameful – we are only of the only 7 nations to vote against the Rome Statute of the ICC in 1998. Our policy aligns us with countries like China, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Qatar, and Israel – the only others not to ratify this treaty. Our closest allies all support the ICC, and we must join in to give it full force. Although Clinton signed it, Bush reversed this policy. The U.S. (esp. Pres. Bush) has been against the ICC due to fears that the ICC might conduct politically motivated investigations and prosecutions of U.S. officials. These fears have absolutely no basis because the ICC investigates only the most serious genocides and war crimes; it has a very detailed mechanisms with checks and balances to ensure against politically motivated cases. I won’t go into it, but it is quite sure that the ICC would not indict a U.S. official without a great deal of accurate evidence and without approval from a panel of judges. The ICC does not try cases unless a national government refuses to investigate an issue, as well. The Bush administration has also been trying to get other countries to sign agreements requiring them not to surrender American nationals to the ICC, which effectively exempt U.S. nationals from ICC jurisdiction. This is clearly something that needs to be changed, if the ICC is to be able to exercise its power fairly and indiscriminately. If the U.S. is to be an international leader in democracy and freedom, it cannot continue to promote impunity for the most serious crimes, and oppose one of the most important human rights institutions in the world. If the U.S. is to criticize other countries for their human rights violations, we cannot continue to take a hypocritical stance against human rights and civil liberties. Our policies with the ICC and Guantanamo tarnish our credibility as a champion of human rights and justice. Where is the life, liberty and pursuit of happiness for all the detainees in Guantanamo? Pres. Obama must work to change these policies, so we can finally be a role model and live up to our constitution in providing our people with liberty and justice – for all.

I’ll end with a few inspiring quotes from his victory speech in Grant Park because he can say it better than I could ever dream of (All my classmates back at NU – I am so jealous that you were in the midst of all this action, excitement, energy – and some of you even had the chance to go to Grant Park. I wish I was there!). I hope sincerely he lives up to his words – and I wish him incredible luck in his journey over the next four (maybe eight!) years

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.

Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.

Yes we can!