On Its 6th Anniversary, Protests and Demands for Closing Gitmo

In January 2002, the US Guantanamo base in Cuba turned into the world”s most notorious prison after the United States sent to it the so called terrorist suspects or those allegedly linked to Al-Qaeda network . 
 Based in the far southeast of the Cuban capital, Havana and outside the US soil, this detention was given wide-scale powers for violating human rights laws . 
The number of the detainees in Guantanamo reached 775 persons of many nationalities facing many forms of physical and psychological torture while the US administration doesn”t sue these tortures who violate human rights.
 Reactions on sixth anniversary for opening Guantanamo prison 
Marking the sixth anniversary of establishing this notorious prison, the Moroccan human rights movement called earlier for a vigil last Jan, 11, 2008, in front of UN premises in Rabat to voice its rejection to the human rights violations committed under claims of fighting terrorism because these violations are considered another form of terrorism. 
Also, hundreds of persons demonstrated in financial district Martin Place in Sydney wearing orange suits like those worn by Guantanamo detainees.
“Six years have passed since we first saw the first detainees wearing this orange clothes and there are still more than 275 persons detained in Guantanamo without a trial”, said Claire Mallinson, National Director of Amnesty International Australia.
 The organization called also for shutting down the US Guantanamo Camp in Cuba and said that it will stage several demonstrations in London and other parts of the world, specially in Sweden, Ireland, Bahrain, Paraguay and the Philippines. 
The London-based organization made two cages whose size is the same as Guantanamo cells and put them Governor”S Square in front of the US embassy in London and activists made shifts in remaining in it all night. 
Also, other demonstrators wearing orange clothes like those of Guantanamo detainees rallied in front of in National Mall Park in Washington to demand the US President George Bush”s administration to shut down this prison and they sent a petition that contained signatures of 1100 members of parliaments from the four corners of the globe and signatures of 100000 US citizens. 
For his part, Dr. Abu Bakr Al Qurabi, Yemeni Foreign Minister said: Yemen stresses that principles of international justice and human rights enjoin ending the file of detainees in Guantanamo in light of efforts and contacts carried out by many human rights organizations all over the world. 
Qurabi called on US concerned services to hand over the Yemeni citizens detained in Guantanamo or any other prison, seeing that solving the problem of Guantanamo prison does not come through establishing similar mini Guantanamos all over the world. 
Dr. Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Kuwait, said that:” The government does not accept maintaining the detention of Kuwaiti citizens without trial. We only seek justice and we call for releasing them”. 
The file of the Kuwaiti detainees in Guantanamo prison was scheduled to top topics of discussion during the meetings between Bush Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed, the Amir of Kuwait and other political leaders. 
It is worth mentioning that twelve Kuwaitis were detained by the US forces in Afghanista in its war in 2001, under claims of belonging to Al-Qaeda network. Kuwait demanded Washington release them, but only eight were released and it still keeps four and the file is expected to be finally solved in Bush- Sabah meeting.
 Human rights activists staunchly attack the detention measures in Guantanamo and see that they violate defence rights and that it treats the prisoners in a bad way. 
What happened and is happening in Guantanamo has serious repercussions on the world as a whole as it creates a precedent for several countries which encouraged legalizing violating civil, political human rights under claims of fighting terrorism.