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To some, Guantanamo is a bastion of freedom, guarded by a few good
men; to others, it is a prison camp with no freedom left at all. The
first captives arrived at the US Naval Base on Cuba’s Southern coast
in January of 2002. It is estimated that currently more than 500 people from over 43 different countries are
still being detained there. By
holding them in Cuba (deemed outside of US jurisdiction) and by
classifying them as "unlawful enemy combatants" (a military term not
used in international laws), the US Government is evading humanitarian
and human rights duties and both public and judicial scrutiny.
Although the three youngest children were released in January 2004,
and five more have since turned eighteen, two
juveniles under the age of eighteen remain imprisoned in Guantanamo.
Despite greater national and international media reports of torture,
hunger strikes and force feedings, public
outcry remains inaudible. Regardless of the wrangling over prisoner of
war status, a case can be made that today’s intricate safety net
of human rights treaties and humanitarian laws leaves no one
unprotected, least of all children.
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Initially ten,
now seven children still remain imprisoned in Guantanamo;
after being held for four years, only one teenager has been
charged and has had a pre-trial hearing. They remain without
any access
to family.
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The U.S. is
party to the Geneva Conventions, which afford children special
protection whether or not they are deemed POWs.
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The U.S. recently
ratified the Optional Protocol of the Convention on the Rights
of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict,
committing to expeditious demobilization and social reintegration
of child soldiers.
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The U.S. promised
in an UN resolution to comply with international human rights
and humanitarian laws while combating terrorism.
Leave
No Child behind in Gitmo's prisons!
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Demand
the juveniles be released immediately into UNICEF's child soldier
repatriation program and reunited with their families or
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That they be charged and tried according to international
standards of juvenile justice as soon as possible
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Call
your local paper and find out why no one wants to talk about
these imprisoned children
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Talk
to people in the campaign of your favorite presidential candidate
and ask why he hasn't spoken on their behalf.
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