Posted by Jonathan Adler:
New Procedures for Afghan Detainees:
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_09_13-2009_09_19.shtml#1252848912
[1]From today's Washington Post:
Hundreds of prisoners held by the U.S. military in Afghanistan will
for the first time have the right to challenge their indefinite
detention and call witnesses in their defense under a new review
system being put in place this week, according to administration
officials.
The new system will be applied to the more than 600 Afghans held at
the Bagram military base, and will mark the first substantive
change in the overseas detention policies that President Obama
inherited from the Bush administration. . . .
Under the new rules, each detainee will be assigned a U.S. military
official, not a lawyer, to represent his interests and examine
evidence against him. In proceedings before a board composed of
military officers, detainees will have the right to call witnesses
and present evidence when it is "reasonably available," the
official said. The boards will determine whether detainees should
be held by the United States, turned over to Afghan authorities or
released. For those ordered held longer, the process will be
repeated at six-month intervals.
The Bagram system is similar to the annual Administrative Review
Boards used for suspected terrorists at the U.S. military prison at
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Officials said the review proceedings at
Bagram will mark an improvement in part because they will be held
in detainees' home countries -- where witnesses and evidence are
close at hand.
The NYT also reports [2]here.
References
1.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/12/AR2009091202798_pf.html
2. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/13/world/asia/13detain.html
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