David Hicks - 'Hicks Case Pushed to Suit Howard' (The Ausralian, 2008)

ꕤ Info/Reference SOURCE as marked David Hicks Source Primarily http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/hicks-case-pushed-to-suit-howard/story-e6frg6nf-1111115636668 Hicks case 'pushed to suit Howard'     Geoff Elliott     The Australian     February 25, 2008 12:00AM ARTICLE SUMMARY Afghan Northern Alliance { ally of USA } sold Muslim convert David Hicks to US military for US$5,000 bounty -- 2001 - kidnapped & transferred to Guantanamo Bay -- tortured via anal examination -- 2004 - charges under new military commission system -- 2006 - ruling (Hamdan v. Rumsfeld) -- military commission unconstitutional -- US Act of Congress re-establishes military commission -- 2007 - desperate to get out of Guantanamo, accepts plea bargain -- accepts 9mths remainder of 7-year sentence -- precluded from media contact -- govt delayed his release until 2007 Aust. election -- by 2006 - Hicks 5 years detention without charge -- Col. Morris Davis -- Chief prosecutor, Bush admin Guantanamo tribunals -- says political interference -- by Bush admin & Howard govt (Col. Morris Davis)  -- William 'Jim' Haynes, seeks a 'how soon' on charges -- Pentagon's general counsel: William 'Jim' Haynes -- controversial figure -- tight with US VP Dick Cheney -- 2002 - endorsed military & CIA  -- use of 'enhanced' enhanced interrogation (ie torture) -- incl. water-boarding (simulated drowning) -- waterboarding regarded as torture by many legal experts -- At time of Hayes request: -- prosecution only had Military Commission Act in place -- no manual for military commissions -- no regulations for trial by military commissions -- no convening authority (to oversee tribunal process) -- Supreme Court had overturned military commission trial -- rules for military comm. trials subsequently rewritten -- Hayes request -- only sense in context of political environment in Australia -- Australia PM John Howard in press -- Howard making it clear Hicks had to be charged by Feb. -- US prosecution was getting pressured -- also, Dick Cheney was due to visit Australia at end February -- thus clear to prosecutor: -- Hicks was 'top-agenda item' with PM Howard -- Dick Cheney goes to Australia:  Hicks was charged -- pushing train out of station before all track was laid -- phone calls:  Hayes in Australia to Col. Davis, prosecutor -- PM Howard wanted Hicks settled:  difficult election -- sore point for Col. Davis -- Hicks Taliban terror training manual -- Col. Davis:  Australia's Taliban was no innocent abroad -- Col. Davis pro:  10 years prison plea deal -- Hicks case: -- disturbing signs of political interference from Haynes -- ignored because Hayes not in Col. Davis chain of command -- but:  2007 -- Pentagon reigns in independence of military lawyers -- change in tribunal oversight, 4 Oct 2007 -- Hayes put in charge of tribunal process -- political appointment Hayes opinions = prosecution orders -- Colonel Davis resigned & turned whistleblower -- not just political interference -- concern evidence obtained via torture at military court -- Col. Davis wanted no part in that -- Col. Davis gave up potential gains for clear conscience -- Col. Davis expected to be 'swiftboated' [CLICK IMAGE to enlarge] [CLICK IMAGE to enlarge] Meanwhile, back in Australia: -- PM Howard & his cabinet ministers deny political fix -- PM Howard & Foreign Minister Alexander Downer -- often misrepresented Hicks plea deal as 'agreement'  -- ie between Col. Davis & Hicks' military lawyer -- (Maj. Michael Mori) -- Col. Davis had no knowledge of deal -- Hicks deal struck behind prosecutor Col. Davis back -- between Major Mori -- & convening authority:  Susan Crawford -- Crawford deputised -- Brigadier Gen. Tom Hemingway to strike deal -- Brigadier Gen. Hemingway rejects political fix conclusion -- Brigadier Gen. Hemingway:  retired May 2011 -- Hemingway denies approach by Bush admin / VP office -- Col. Davis says Hemingway negotiated:  'a terrible deal' -- Col. Davis says:  any reasonable person: -- looking at timeline could conclude Hicks trial was rigged -- look at:  whole chronology -- impetus to help out PM John Howard -- impetus to make problem for PM Howard go away quickly -- problem went away in March 2007 'The Australian' -- asked Pentagon for a response (in a lengthy email) -- charting Colonel Davis's chronology -- General Hemingway, spox Jeffrey Gordon: merely disputes "the assertions made by Colonel Davis." Source Primarily http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/hicks-case-pushed-to-suit-howard/story-e6frg6nf-1111115636668 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hicks ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- COMMENT Got curious about Hicks.  Everyone probably knows all about him. I don't know anything about him, because I wasn't interested. Noticed Northern Alliance (the US allies) sold him.  Came across Northern Alliance the other day.   From what little I know so far, Northern Alliance sound despicable. It looks like the Hicks thing was politically exploited by the Liberal government? Need to come back to this.  Too sleepy to read now. ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- If I understand correctly, the Howard (Liberal) government in Australia was able to make things 'go away' (ie the settlement of the Hicks matter), & the incentive for the Australian politicians was political expediency:  ie need to present well in a difficult forthcoming election - and political friends in the US obliged? ꕤ

2010 - Obama & Bush - Geneva Conventions of 1949

ꕤ Article SOURCE http://foreignpolicy.com/2010/08/11/obama-bush-and-the-geneva-conventions/ http://foreignpolicy.com/2010/08/11/obama-bush-and-the-geneva-conventions/ SUMMARY - 2010 Article Geneva Conventions of 1949 -- international treaties -- x4 separate treaties -- first 3 agreements revised previous treaties -- ie.  dating from 1864, 1906 & 1929 -- humanitarian protections     - for sick or wounded soldiers on land     - sailors at sea     - prisoners of war -- 1949 - fourth agreement: protections for civilians in conflict zones Best known of agreements is:  Third Geneva Convention -- protections for those who qualify as Prisoners of War (POWs) -- USA long objected to certain provisions in First Protocol -- Second Protocol submitted to Senate 1987 -- *Senate DID NOT ACT ON IT -- Bush admin signed & ratified Third Protocol -- creating alternative protection symbol (Red Diamond) for countries -- primarily Israel, that do not use Red Cross or Red Crescent -- x4 1949 protocols = bedrock of international laws of war -- Geneva Conventions applied in:     - Korea     - Vietnam     - First Gulf Wars -- post 9-11, George W Bush admin decides Conventions do not apply to conflict with al Qaeda because al Qaeda not a party to the conventions -- determined that while Afghanistan was party to Conventions, Taliban were not entitled to POW protections -- Bush admin refusal to apply Geneva Conventions (& certain provisions of human rights treaties) condemned:  placing detainees into 'legal black hole'. -- 2006 Supreme Court - rejects Bush admin argument -- US Supreme Court held that EVEN IF Geneva Conventions did not apply in entirety:  COMMON ARTICLE 3 prohibits torture & inhuman or degrading treatment of detainees, including al-Qaeda detainees. -- Obama entered into pledge to restore US respect for international law. -- purportedly banned coercive interrogation methods (torture) -- rescinded Bush's interpretations of Common Article 3 -- 2009, Obama reaffirmed US commitment to "abide by the Geneva Conventions" in his Nobel Prize remarks -- but Obama admin had not as at 2010 applied Conventions as legal framework -- as at 2010 Obama admin held 100's of al-Qaeda & Taliban detainees -- as ENEMY COMBATANTS in Guantanamo & Afghanistan, but -- denied POW status per Third Convention -- denied civilian 'protected persons' status per Fourth Convention -- detainees denied minimum protections for detained persons -- per Article 75 of the First Protocol -- ie. to be told reasons for one's detention Article claims USA has been, for over 100 years, a respected leader in developing international laws of war & suggests USA should engage in dialogue to develop rules. http://foreignpolicy.com/2010/08/11/obama-bush-and-the-geneva-conventions/ ---------------------- ꕤ ---------------------- COMMENT Found this an interesting article. [no time to check for typos properly] ꕤ

USA - Guantanamo Bay - Hunger Strike - Media Suppression

U.S.A. US 'Secret State' #US national security state w/in a state = 6 million classified persons (larger than Norway, NZ or Scotland pop)! >> https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=aMYqzGwwoF8 … Guantanamo Info re Guantanamo Bay, #Cuba is being withheld from press (+ public) ... media don't know how many on hunger strike ... infowars > Get this: ".. or how frequently assaults on guards take place" infowars GTFOOH, it's the other way around. A joke article?    Torture "I prohibited – w/out exception or equivocation – the use of torture by ..USA. I ordered the prison at Guantanamo Bay closed" TheHill >> That was Obama 5 years ago @ UN Assembly - http://goo.gl/8QSRWg  >> Man, what happened? Still unwanted 'tenant' of Cuba? “Under international law, States have an obligation to prevent & combat torture ..." ohchr/org >> Does TonyAbbott's legislator know this? >> "Every nation must know: America will live its values, and we will lead by example." ... LOL ... Stop squatting in Cuba! Media http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/civil-rights/218224-global-commitment-to-healing-torture-survivors This article is SO COOL - "Global commitment to healing torture survivors" [TheHill]... Makes you feel all warm & cuddly when you read that. > "donations from ..international community into one fund for torture survivor rehabilitation" .. The Sadists' torture kitty? TheHill so obvious .. 1) Obama bull re commitment 2) Torture fund healing worlds tortured victims 3) launch into Real Agenda: slam #Syria "human rights atrocities committed in Syria " - ATROCITIES ppl!! > UN Puppet has run out of words 2 depict gravity of crimes! -----------------------------------------------------  COMMENT Guantanamo must be a sensitive subject for the Americans.   Just as soon as I posted the information that the press is being muzzled, some guy jumped on to point the finger at Cuba! Hopefully the above makes sense.  It does to me, but that might be because I handled the information and it's fresh in my mind. Not sure if the InfoWars people are referring to a *current* hunger strike, or if it was just general information that they're after that's being suppressed by the Obama government. In any event, it's an interesting snippet of America's goings on. Should mention this is part of a wider story -- journalists unhappy about White House suppression of press that's been ongoing (eg  picky re foreign affairs correspondents, reward those that comply & exclude those that challenge authorities (ie do their jobs), law suit regarding NY journalist (think he may have been investigated, spied on, searched and basically harassed, from recollection).  Don't remember the name of the journalist or too may of the particulars, but I think the case is a big deal and it relates to freedom of press etc.   From prior information, it's known that the NSA have been involved in vetting news (LA Times former reporter). Reporters also unhappy in USA that even common reporting (such as routine crime data & statistics etc, that were previously available at police stations as a matter of course) are now being blocked by officials at police stations, who consider the press an intrusion these days.   Just going by memory.  Citations are here somewhere on blog, I'm too lazy to search for links.   Tried to set up the standard Google search thing in Blogger, but it wasn't working.  Might have to tackle it again some time, as it's pretty handy. And check out the size of the US 'secret state'!