Justice at Guantanamo? The Paradox of David Hicks
Of the 500 detainees still imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay, Hicks is one of only four detainees formally charged with offences. The remaining detainees, many preparing to enter their fifth year of detention, have not yet been charged. In this sense, Hicks can be seen to be one of the ‘lucky’ ones, released from the limbo of detention in the absence of charge, trial or conviction. The paradox is that the treatment of David Hicks to date has transformed him from an alleged perpetrator of war crimes into a possible victim of one. This stems from his likely status as a prisoner of war.
CRIKEY!I do not know whether David Hicks is guilty or innocent of charges related to terrorism. It is, however, damaging to Australia's reputation that an Australian citizen has been rotting in Guantanamo Bay for nearly five years without trial. It has taken his American Army lawyer, Major Mori, to argue that he cannot receive a fair trial before an American military commission and a British judge to state that the long detention and proposed trial of Hicks is contrary to the rule of law.
[Former Chief Justice, Sir Gerard Brennan, has said that the Australian Government's supine acceptance of the situation "shows we are morally impoverished", adding that an "Australian citizen's right to justice should never be a mere trading item in international relations"]
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