Worldwide law attack on US
2003-08-21 10:50
London - The heads of 10 leading law bodies around the world have called on the United States to give a "fair and lawful trial" to prisoners detained at Guantanamo Bay.
They made their demand in a letter to the Guardian newspaper on Thursday.
The London-based daily said law society chairpeople and presidents, including those from Britain, France, Sweden, Australia and Canada, expressed misgivings in the letter about US plans to put foreign prisoners held at the American naval base in Cuba before military tribunals without juries.
Among the estimated 660 detainees held there after being captured by the US during its "war on terror" are nine Britons.
The letter to the leftwing Guardian says: "As leaders of the legal professions in our respective countries, we wish to make public our concerns at the treatment of the non-US 'enemy combatants' detained by the US authorities.
"We strongly believe that there are now only two legally acceptable courses of action open to the US authorities.
Wouldn't seek death penalty
"Either the US government must return the detainees to their own home countries where they can be tried under their own national laws, or they should be tried in a US civilian court with full guarantees for a fair trial."
In early July, US President George W Bush designated six of the detainees as subject to trial by military commissions.
But after a storm of criticism in Britain and Australia, he gave his allies assurances that US military prosecutors would not seek the death penalty against two British nationals - Feroz Abbasi, 23, and Moazzam Begg, 35 - nor Australian David Hicks.
Lawyers for the Britons have threatened to boycott any hearings unless they received guarantees they will be fair, according to the Guardian.
Britain's attorney-general, Peter Goldsmith, met US officials for the third time last week to agree on the details of the treatment of the British prisoners.