From tortured illegal combatants to PoW with rights

Alleged terrorists in the US custody can now breathe a huge sigh of relief for they are no longer considered as illegal combatants but as prisoners of war. This new status would mean they will be entitled to the protections accorded by the Geneva conventions.

This massive change in the US policy would assure that these detainees are treated in compliance with the minimum standards spelled out in the Geneva conventions.

This would mean that these detainees – held either in US holding facility in Guantanamo Bay or in the unknown cells of allied countries – can now have a proper trial to determine their participation in acts of terrorism. More importantly, it would also mean that there should be no more tortures and renditions (read: flying detainees to friendly countries to be tortured for information).

In 2002, the US government termed all those detained in Afghanistan, and subsequently in Iraq and elsewhere in the world in the war against terrorism, as illegal combatants as they were carrying out an illegal act of war against the US.

These detainees were held without trials, or put up on military tribunals without any rights of a defendant. All terrorism suspects arrested anywhere in the world were taken into US custody, where it has been alleged that these detainees were tortured and held under duress.

The US government’s change in policy is due to a Supreme Court ruling which said that the Geneva conventions applied to these terror suspects.

The New York Times reported that:

“The main thrust of the recent Supreme Court ruling, in a case known as Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, was that the administration had exceeded its authority by creating a system of tribunals without the approval of Congress. But the court also declared that the suspects fell under Article 3, which applies to all “armed combatants”, and that detainees were able to assert their rights under Article 3 in federal court.”

Although the US government has said that it will comply with the ruling, no details are given as to when it will do so.

I hope the change in the policy will see more detainees taking up the matter to the court to challenge their detention. In that case, the US authorities will have to show tangible evidence that these detainees are actually dangerous to us.

It will also be a lesson to all governments who hide under oppressive laws and turn a blind eye to the rules of law.