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Kuwait Needs to Speak Up on Guantanamo
Last week, The Kuwait Times featured my op-ed, "Kuwait Needs to Speak Up on Guantanamo." I provided the full text of the op-ed below and look forward to your comments.
You can also access the original article at: http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=NDMwNTE2NDU5
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With the Obama administration's January 2010 deadline for closing Guantanamo Bay now in the past, two Kuwaiti detainees remain imprisoned in Cuba where they have been held without trial for more than eight years. While the U.S. government is primarily responsible for the suffering these Kuwaitis have endured, the Government of Kuwait is also responsible for allowing the injustice to continue.
As is universally recognized, Kuwait is a close and faithful ally of the United States. The United States liberated Kuwait following the Iraqi invasion of 1990. More recently, Kuwait provided critical support as a staging area for the U.S. military during the Iraq War.
To be fair, the Emir of Kuwait has sought the return of the Kuwaiti detainees in face-to-face meetings with both President Bush and President Obama. The Emir has also sent a letter to the U.S. government requesting that all Kuwaiti citizens detained at Guantanamo be returned. Other Kuwaiti officials have repeated that request to their counterparts in the U.S. government.
The Government of Kuwait has also fulfilled all of the conditions the U.S. government established for the return of the Kuwaiti detainees. Perhaps most significantly, Kuwait established a state-of-the-art rehabilitation center that provides access to education, medical care, group discussions, and physical exercise to help detainees recover from their long ordeal in Guantanamo.
But while Kuwait has clearly made an effort to secure the return of its citizens, these efforts have not been strong enough. Contrast Kuwait's quiet, diplomatic approach with that of Saudi Arabia, which openly criticized the U.S. government and demanded its citizens back. As a result, more than 100 Saudi detainees were transferred from Guantanamo to Saudi Arabia.
Despite the close ties between the United States and Kuwait, the United States does not appear eager to send Kuwaitis home. For example, on September 17, 2009, a U.S. federal judge ordered the immediate release of Fouad Al Rabiah, an innocent Kuwaiti who was interrogated in "enhanced" ways at the hands of his U.S. captors. Rather than immediately returning him to Kuwait, the U.S. government delayed and stalled Mr. Al Rabiah's transfer, forcing his attorneys to ask that U.S. officials be held in contempt of
court. It was not until December 9, 2009, almost three months after the judge's order, that Mr. Al Rabiah was finally released from Guantanamo and returned to Kuwait. Still, even with a Federal judge's opinion that the United States had no authority to detain Mr Al Rabiah, the Kuwaiti government refused to demand his return.
If the United States was reluctant to release a demonstrably innocent man, it most certainly will be in no rush to repatriate my client, Fayiz Al Kandari, whose habeas case is still pending despite Fayiz having spent more than eight years in Guantanamo.
At this critical time, the United States is turning its back on its faithful ally. The United States may be legitimately reluctant to return detainees to countries such as Tunisia or Libya where former prisoners may face further torture or persecution. But there are no such concerns about Kuwait. To the contrary, Kuwait treats its returned detainees humanely and helps reintegrate them into society with a rehabilitation program modeled after the successful Saudi program.
No one likes to tell their friends they are wrong. But there comes a time in every relationship when a little push back is necessary. And the friendship survives. Now is the time for the Government of Kuwait to take a stand. It might be outside its comfort zone, but it is the right thing to do for its two citizens still imprisoned at Guantanamo.
Lt. Col. Barry Wingard is the U.S. military attorney for Kuwaiti detainee Fayiz Al Kandari who still awaits his day court more than eight years after he was sold into US custody. The views presented are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the United States Department of Defense or its components.
You can also access the original article at: http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=NDMwNTE2NDU5
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With the Obama administration's January 2010 deadline for closing Guantanamo Bay now in the past, two Kuwaiti detainees remain imprisoned in Cuba where they have been held without trial for more than eight years. While the U.S. government is primarily responsible for the suffering these Kuwaitis have endured, the Government of Kuwait is also responsible for allowing the injustice to continue.
As is universally recognized, Kuwait is a close and faithful ally of the United States. The United States liberated Kuwait following the Iraqi invasion of 1990. More recently, Kuwait provided critical support as a staging area for the U.S. military during the Iraq War.
To be fair, the Emir of Kuwait has sought the return of the Kuwaiti detainees in face-to-face meetings with both President Bush and President Obama. The Emir has also sent a letter to the U.S. government requesting that all Kuwaiti citizens detained at Guantanamo be returned. Other Kuwaiti officials have repeated that request to their counterparts in the U.S. government.
The Government of Kuwait has also fulfilled all of the conditions the U.S. government established for the return of the Kuwaiti detainees. Perhaps most significantly, Kuwait established a state-of-the-art rehabilitation center that provides access to education, medical care, group discussions, and physical exercise to help detainees recover from their long ordeal in Guantanamo.
But while Kuwait has clearly made an effort to secure the return of its citizens, these efforts have not been strong enough. Contrast Kuwait's quiet, diplomatic approach with that of Saudi Arabia, which openly criticized the U.S. government and demanded its citizens back. As a result, more than 100 Saudi detainees were transferred from Guantanamo to Saudi Arabia.
Despite the close ties between the United States and Kuwait, the United States does not appear eager to send Kuwaitis home. For example, on September 17, 2009, a U.S. federal judge ordered the immediate release of Fouad Al Rabiah, an innocent Kuwaiti who was interrogated in "enhanced" ways at the hands of his U.S. captors. Rather than immediately returning him to Kuwait, the U.S. government delayed and stalled Mr. Al Rabiah's transfer, forcing his attorneys to ask that U.S. officials be held in contempt of
court. It was not until December 9, 2009, almost three months after the judge's order, that Mr. Al Rabiah was finally released from Guantanamo and returned to Kuwait. Still, even with a Federal judge's opinion that the United States had no authority to detain Mr Al Rabiah, the Kuwaiti government refused to demand his return.
If the United States was reluctant to release a demonstrably innocent man, it most certainly will be in no rush to repatriate my client, Fayiz Al Kandari, whose habeas case is still pending despite Fayiz having spent more than eight years in Guantanamo.
At this critical time, the United States is turning its back on its faithful ally. The United States may be legitimately reluctant to return detainees to countries such as Tunisia or Libya where former prisoners may face further torture or persecution. But there are no such concerns about Kuwait. To the contrary, Kuwait treats its returned detainees humanely and helps reintegrate them into society with a rehabilitation program modeled after the successful Saudi program.
No one likes to tell their friends they are wrong. But there comes a time in every relationship when a little push back is necessary. And the friendship survives. Now is the time for the Government of Kuwait to take a stand. It might be outside its comfort zone, but it is the right thing to do for its two citizens still imprisoned at Guantanamo.
Lt. Col. Barry Wingard is the U.S. military attorney for Kuwaiti detainee Fayiz Al Kandari who still awaits his day court more than eight years after he was sold into US custody. The views presented are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the United States Department of Defense or its components.
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'The United States may be legitimately reluctant to return detainees to countries such as Tunisia or Libya where former prisoners may face further torture or persecution. But there are no such concerns about Kuwait.'
That neutralized the main possibility I could think of for the US being unwilling to release the prisoners to Kuwait.
If I am forced to think further, two things come to mind:
Kuwait doesn't want to buck the US for its own agenda, or the US fears the torture of those prisoners could come to light with bad consequences.
March 2, 2010 8:45 AM | Reply | Permalink
"If the United States was reluctant to release a demonstrably innocent man, it most certainly will be in no rush to repatriate my client, Fayiz Al Kandari, whose habeas case is still pending despite Fayiz having spent more than eight years in Guantanamo."
Just give him his day in court. You hear nothing from the government about Fayiz al Kandari. Why? Is it because they have nothing on him? You never hear that he is a bad guy. You never hear anything. Why?
March 9, 2010 11:31 AM | Reply | Permalink
How can we trust Kuwait with the nuclear power they desire if they cannot be trusted to control two individuals. Has America become the overlord of this ally or is Kuwait even considered a partner?
I'm sure the US would have no trouble with its citizens being jailed on bogus hearsay for over eight years. This situation smacks of hatred and disdain in the Muslim world which is being directed at the US.
March 9, 2010 12:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
I have never understood why the Kuwait government has not applied pressure for the release of remaining detainees. Fayiz deserves the support of his country. Money deals between the United States and Kuwait shouldn't cause Fayiz to spend another second in the sweatbox called Guantanamo.
March 23, 2010 7:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Background: This piece was originally published in the Kuwait Times (2/25/2010)in an effort to get the government of Kuwait involved in doing more than politely asking for the release of their citizens. I believe the piece has had an effect in getting Kuwait officials more insistant on follow-up questions when they received the typical US government answers that are vague to the point of worthless.
Lt Col Wingard
March 27, 2010 5:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hopefully, Kuwait will stop being silent. If they don't appear to care, then what does that say to the "powers" that be? Come on USA, let's stop the madness. Eight years? This is just too insane.
June 8, 2010 3:45 PM | Reply | Permalink