Anger Grows in Germany over Guantánamo

German officials from all the major political parties have been vocal in calling for the US to shut down the prison camp at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.  The voices have become louder since it was revealed over the weekend that three prisoners committed suicide.  And the response of one official of the US Dept. of State, that the suicides were a "PR stunt", only added fuel to the growing firestorm of controversy surrounding the prison camp.  Representives of the ruling CDU/SPD coalition in Berlin were swift in expressing their condemnation:

"We expect the US to investigate the matter immediately," said a government spokesman in Berlin on Sunday. "Our position on Guantanamo is well-known," he added, referring to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s call earlier this year to close the facility.

Peter Struck, parliamentary leader of the Social Democrats, said the events in Guantanamo confirmed international doubts concerning the camp. "The US should close the camp and give the prisoners a fair trial," he said.

The Deputy President of the Bundestag Wolfgang Thierse expressed outrage that the suicides were described by the US military as "acts of warfare":

"Ich bin sehr befremdet, dass man Selbstmorde, die unter strengsten Sicherheitsbedingungen Inhaftierte begangen haben, umdeutet in einen Kriegsakt", sagte Thierse der "Berliner Zeitung". Eine solche Umdeutung solle nur der Rechtfertigung eigenen Fehlverhaltens dienen."

"Thierse sagte dazu, die Selbstmorde erinnerten daran, dass die USA behaupteten, in Guantanamo säßen besonders gefährliche Terroristen ein, dafür aber keinerlei Beweise vorlegten: "Sie verstoßen gegen alle Maßstäbe eines Rechtsstaates und sogar gegen die des Kriegsrechts." Es gebe nur eine Antwort: "Schließt dieses Gefangenenlager!"

From the opposition parties, both Jürgen Trittin  of the Green Party and the FDP foreign affairs expert Wolfgang Gerhardt were not satisfied by the official response of the US that the suicides would be investigated.  They demand an independent inquiry from the United Nations:

Der FDP-Außenexperte Wolfgang Gerhardt hält die Zusage für nicht ausreichend. Es wäre das Beste, die USA würden die Todesfälle von den Vereinten Nationen aufklären lassen. Auch der Grünen-Außenexperte Jürgen Trittin verlangte, der UN-Sonderberichterstatter gegen Folter, Manfred Nowak, müsse sofort uneingeschränkten Zugang zu den Häftlingen erhalten. Viele der Häftlinge säßen seit Jahren ohne Anklage, ohne Zugang zu Informationen und unter menschenunwürdigen Haftbedingungen in Guantanamo fest.

Finally, Monika Knoche of the Left delegation in the Bundestag (Die Linke) demands that Chancellor Merkel put the closure of Guantanamo on the table for discussion when President Bush visits Germany next month.  The continued captivity of the German-Turkish Muslim Murat Kurnaz at Guantanamo only adds to the anxiety and anger in Germany concerning the prison camp.

Guantanamo Human Rights Menschenrechte