There are a hundred and sixty-six prisoners at Guantánamo Bay. Military officials told reporters earlier this week that thirty-one—almost one in five—were engaged in a hunger strike. By Friday, the number
was thirty-seven, or closer to one in four. Eighty-six—more than one in
two—have been cleared for release, meaning that the government doesn’t
think that it has a case against them or even that they pose a threat,
but it is keeping them locked up anyway, and has no imminent plans to
let them go. Only six of the prisoners—just about one in
twenty-eight—are facing trial. That means that there are six times as
many prisoners on hunger strikes as there are those who have actual
charges lodged against them.
Read the entire piece. The prisoners on hunger strike are being force-fed through nasal tubes. That such a prison as Guantánamo exists at all is a shameful blight on the reputation of the United States. President Obama must do everything in his power to close the prison by executive order or whatever means possible and not continue to depend on Congress. The prisoners who have been cleared and have no hope for release fall into despair and want to die, and who can blame them? At the press conference yesterday, Obama said,
"It's not sustainable - I mean, the notion that
we're going to continue to keep over 100 individuals in a no-man's land
in perpetuity," Exactly. So do something, Mr President.
