EU Council must demand closure of Guantánamo - Watson

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Thu 30th Mar 2006

Detainees held at Guantanamo Bay

With approximately 500 men and women of around 35 nationalities held at detention facilities at the US Guantánamo Bay Naval Base, where detainees are allegedly subjected to cruel treatment, ALDE Members urge, yet again, for the camp to be shut down.

"There have been several demands made by Member States, such as Belgium and the Netherlands, calling for the camp to be closed. Liberals and Democrats question why this item was not included in the recent EU Summit agenda?" said ALDE leader Graham Watson.

"EU leaders had to close their eyes on an important international concern due to the fact that they were attending a summit which -with the one exception of Belarus- was restricted to an economic agenda. One way to change that in the future is to ensure that traditional Spring Summits become fully fledged European Council meetings where Heads of State can discuss any international matters they deem are important", he proposed.

On the question of detainees held in Guantánamo Bay, Liberals and Democrats deplore the fact that the prisoners are held without access to a fair trial or legal representation. They are also not allowed adequate contact with their families who are not informed of their legal status, health or well-being.

"It is high time for EU leaders to state loud and clear that no prisoner should be kept in a legal vacuum. The EU and the US must intensify their dialogue on how to apply international humanitarian law and human rights in the fight against terror. In the meanwhile, Guantánamo Bay must be closed. Prisoners must be tried in accordance with international law. The US detention camps need to be opened up to independent scrutiny, with investigations on all allegations of torture or cruel treatment. Council must speak up against Guantánamo and call for it to be closed down", said Graham Watson, stressing that the European Parliament adopted a resolution last February, calling on the US Administration "to close the Guantánamo Bay detention facility".

Mr. Watson will be raising the matter in Strasbourg next week in debates with the Austrian Presidency and EU High Representative Javier Solana.