[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 78 (Friday, June 16, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1183]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            CONCERNING THE THREE SUICIDES AT GUANTANAMO BAY

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                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 16, 2006

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker there has been no organization, no 
strategy and no plan for the handling of the prisoners at Guantanamo 
Bay. They have been in prison for years and years, with no hope of 
being formally charged. They are given none of the rights afforded 
prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention nor are they given the 
rights of criminal suspects in the U.S. justice system. In fact, out of 
the roughly 500 detainees at Guantanamo Bay, only four have been 
charged with war crimes. And, since these detainees are classified as 
enemy combatants, they can be held until the Iraq war is over. Since no 
one can accurately determine when the war will end, the prisoners could 
be detained for an indefinite amount of time.
  Mr. Speaker, I visited Guantanamo Bay in 2003. I saw firsthand the 
conditions of the prisoners and the facilities in which they were being 
held. These prisoners were being held in small cells for over a year 
without any hope of having their day in court--or even being formally 
charged with a war crime. With this desperate atmosphere, it is not 
surprising that there have been at least 41 unsuccessful suicide 
attempts by 25 detainees since the United States began taking prisoners 
to the base in January 2002.
  I find it inexcusable that my own country has not demonstrated more 
concern for the basic Constitutional rights of these prisoners. If 
there is legitimate evidence of crime, these prisoners deserve a speedy 
trial.
  Mr. Speaker, we must be a positive example to the world. We must 
prove to all those who would challenge our way of life that a worthy 
Democracy that upholds the rule of law even in the time of conflict, 
can exist. If we are to convince the world that terrorism is wrong and 
freedom is right and just, then as the most powerful voice of liberty, 
the United States of America must start acting as a leader and as an 
example.

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