Witness Names to Be Withheld From Detainee
Defense lawyers preparing for the war crimes trial of a 21-year-old Guantánamo detainee have been ordered by a military judge not to tell their client — or anyone else — the identity of witnesses against him, newly released documents show.
The reason:
“It is conceivable, if not likely, that Al Qaeda members or sympathizers could attempt to target witnesses,” a prosecutor, Maj. Jeffrey D. Groharing of the Marines, wrote to the judge, Col. Peter E. Brownback III of the Army.
The defense reaction:
“Instead of a presumption of innocence and of a public trial,” Commander Kuebler said, “we start with a presumption of guilt and of a secret trial.”
The justification:
“It is so fundamental,” General Hartmann said, “that we’re in this global war on terror. We need to protect our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines and there’s nothing nefarious* about it.”
What does it mean?
#10. Suspend the rule of law.
from Naomi Wolf's Fascist America, in 10 easy steps.
Traditionally in the U.S., as in all countries based on common law, an accused person has the right to a speedy fair trial, the right of habeas corpus and the right to face his/her accusers in open court with complete transparency. The Bush/Cheney administration has successfully manipulated the "rule of law" to its own advantage and it may take a long time for it to return to its sense of fairness and equality, with no guarantee that it ever will.
No candidate on either the Republican or Democratic sides has made a clear statement what they would do to reverse the course of the slide into fascism and the imperial presidency. The are sticking to a cautious road of "it may be necessary...." Mr. Giuliani, of course, has even gone further than that in asserting his beliefs with an even fiercer support for all of Bush's actions.
At this point, there is a sense of hopelessness in the country. In the 1960's these were the types of things that made people "take to the streets" at the drop of a hat. Today, the Boomers, and I am one of them, sit comfortably in their self-made nests, tssking in disbelief, beginning to enjoy their pensions, nodding that there is nothing that they can do, and emphasizing that there are only 13 months left in the Bush/Cheney administration and the problems will then all go away.
I'm not so sure it will...
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