Originally published December 3 2005
Issue of prisoner rights at Guantanamo raises protests from Democrats and civil rights groups
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
A recent vote in the U.S. senate that effectively denies foreign prisoners the rights of habeas corpus may be reversed this week, as many political groups have taken action in the past week to call attention to the measure, which was pushed through Congress as an addition to a military budget bill.
The US senate's decision to deny detainees at Guant�namo Bay the right to challenge their detention in a US court could be overturned this week, following protests from senators, civil rights groups and former military officers.
The senate voted 49-42 on Thursday to effectively reverse a 2004 supreme court decision that extended the writ of habeas corpus to prisoners in the US military camp in Cuba.
The debate took less than an hour and the measure was tacked on to a bill on the military budget.
Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator, argued that his proposal was intended "to correct the balance", causing terror suspects to be treated as "enemy combatants" rather than as potential criminal defendants.
"For 200 years, ladies and gentlemen, in the law of armed conflict, no nation has given an enemy combatant, a terrorist, an al-Qaida member, the ability to go into every federal court in this United States and sue the people that are fighting the war for us," Mr Graham told the senate.
About 200 have already filed habeas corpus motions, all of which would be void if Mr Graham's law were passed.
"If it stands, it means detainees at Guant�namo Bay would have no access to any federal court for anything other than very simple procedural complaints dealing with annual status review," Christopher Anders, a legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, told the New York Times.
Jeff Bingaman, a Democrat senator who has the support of several legal experts, plans to challenge the removal of the habeas corpus provision in the senate as early as today.
"This is not a time to back away from the principles that this country was founded on," he said during the senate debate.
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml