Guantánamo Bay

Lets get a few things straight. A military base is under military control and thus subject to military law.

They swear to uphold and defend the Constitution of the USA.
Why aren't the doing that at Q Bay?

Chaplain Held in Espionage Case Is Freed
By NEIL A. LEWIS

Published: November 26, 2003

ASHINGTON, Nov. 25 ?- The military said on Tuesday that it was releasing Capt. James J. Yee, the former Muslim chaplain at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, after confining him for nearly three months on suspicion of espionage activities.

Captain Yee will be allowed to resume his chaplain duties at Fort Benning, Ga.


At the same time, though, the United States Southern Command, based in Miami, which administers the detention center at Guantánamo Bay, said it was investigating other possible violations of military code by Captain Yee, including contentions that he had kept pornography on his government computer and had an affair. Those new charges are in addition to the ones brought in October contending that Captain Yee, also known as Youseff Yee, had disobeyed orders by taking classified information home when he was leaving Guantánamo in September.

Captain Yee's civilian lawyer, Eugene R. Fidell of Washington, said the fact that the new charges seemed to have nothing to do with national security demonstrated that military authorities had made a major error when they held up Captain Yee as a potential spy at Guantánamo, where he ministered to the mostly Islamic prisoner population.

Mr. Fidell said the initial set of charges of failing to obey a lawful order by taking classified information home without proper covers was not a serious infraction. The new charges, he said, showed that the military was persecuting Captain Yee to cover up its mistake.

"They have destroyed this man's reputation for what turns out to be no good reason," Mr. Fidell said, "and now it appears they are pursuing matters in a completely vindictive manner."

Raul Duany, a spokesman for the Southern Command in Tampa, disputed that assertion, saying: "At no time have we made any implications about what Captain Yee might have been charged with. We only said we're investigating him."

But unnamed military officials were quoted in numerous news reports as saying Captain Yee had apparently become sympathetic with the Muslims held at Guantánamo and had kept on his computer highly classified information. That information, they said, possibly included notes about which detainees had been questioned by which investigators and on what subjects.

Most of the 660 prisoners at Guantánamo were captured in Afghanistan or Pakistan.

In addition to the pornography and adultery charges against Captain Yee, the Southern Command also charged him on Tuesday with falsely telling a superior that certain compact discs had been cleared for use by detainees. The charge sheet did not provide further details.

Mr. Duany said Captain Yee would face an Article 32 proceeding, an investigation of the charges much like a grand jury in the civilian criminal-justice system. The proceeding could recommend dismissal of the case or some sort of court-martial. In this case, the Article 32 proceeding would be open to the public.

Captain Yee has been held at a naval brig in South Carolina, and Mr. Fidell had complained that his client was needlessly kept in solitary confinement and often in chains and manacles.

On Monday, Mr. Fidell wrote to President Bush, asking him to intercede with the military to at least have Captain Yee released to less harsh conditions.

"I have no alternative to conclude that President Bush or his advisers had some hand in this," Mr. Fidell said on Tuesday, "and I give them great credit."

Captain Yee will have complete freedom at Fort Benning, Mr. Duany said, with the only restriction that he not contact anyone associated with the mission at Guantánamo.

"They have destroyed this man's reputation for what turns out to be no good reason," Mr. Fidell said, "and now it appears they are pursuing matters in a completely vindictive manner."

I think most of the soldiers we have in the military at the moment did not join for love of country, but rather as a last resort for money and an education.

The US military is now going into Mexico to recruit Latinos to go to Iraq. So it's not really about loyalty to country is it?

The prisoners at Guantánamo, as matters stand at present, will be tried by military tribunals. The prisoners have no access to the writ of habeas corpus to determine whether their detention is even arguably justified. The military will act as interrogators, prosecutors, defense counsel, judges, and when death sentences are imposed, as executioners.