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Michael Xu
Mr. Burchett
Honors Government
October 20, 2015
Guantanamo Bay Prison
The world is a dangerous place, and there will always be dangerous people. It is nearly
impossible to determine whether someone is a legitimate threat, but that is no reason to cage the
innocent. Many of the detainees in Guantanamo Bay Prison have been wrongly accused of being
terrorists. Many of the these detainees werent even captured by Americans, as 86% of the
detainees captured by Pakistan or the Northern Alliance were handed over to the United States at
a time in which the United States offered large bounties for capture of suspected enemies
(Report). With the probability of large bounties, bounty hunters bring in many citizens that have
no affiliation to any terrorist group as 55% of the detainees are not determined to have
committed any hostile acts against the United States or its coalition allies (Report). With so
many innocent people in Guantanamo Bay, all detainees deserve a fair and speedy trial, the
inflicted torture upon them will be stopped, and Guantanamo Bay Prison will be closed.
Detainees in Guantanamo Bay Prison have been sent there without any proof of them
being a part of a terrorist organization. Without a fair trial, the detainees have no hope of ever
getting out of Guantanamo Bay and returning to their normal lives. As many people should
know, Guantanamo Bay Prison was created by President George W. Bush to create a legal
regime in which detainees would be placed beyond the protection of the Constitution and
international laws (Crafting). These international laws, such as the Geneva Conventions, protect
prisoners of war from attacks and executions without judgement. However, by putting
Guantanamo Bay beyond these laws, President Bush ensured that the prisoners can be detained
with no proof against them. These prisoners are also being left there because of the Detainee
Treatment Act. In 2005, Congress passed the Detainee Treatment Act, which prevents all alien

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detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, from petitioning US federal courts for writs of habeas
corpus (Violating). With the passing of the Detainee Treatment Act, the detainees have almost
no chance of being heard in court. This can just lead to more bodies being left in Guantanamo
Bay. Therefore, all detainees should be given their rights as stated in the Geneva Convention and
allow them a fair and speedy trial.
Upon arriving in Guantanamo Bay Prison, the detainees are forced to undergo arduous
labor and suffer painful tortures. Even though many of the alleged terrorists criminal activities
were not proven, the guards believe that they are guilty of damaging the country, and therefore
are less than human. With this idea, the soldiers believe that they can bully and torture the
detainees as much as they want. One form of torture that is going on in Guantanamo Bay Prison
is force-feeding the detainees. Forced feeding can constitute a violation of the absolute
prohibition against torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment (Human Rights) as it is
when guards stick a long tube up a detainees nose and down into his stomach. This method is
extremely painful for the detainees, and this practice is used because the detainees went on
hunger strikes as the guards went around looking for their Korans. Other forms of torture in
Guantanamo Bay Prison include preventing detainees from sleeping, beating detainees up, and
lowering the temperature in the detainees rooms. Lakhdar Boumediene stated that once, he was
deprived of sleep for 13 days during an intense interrogation period in early 2002 (The Center).
This just shows that guards, during interrogations, put detainees through torturous acts in order to
get some information. These forms of torture in the end will usually come to no avail; therefore,
the torture should be stopped within the walls of Guantanamo Bay.
The last resort of this act is to close down Guantanamo Bay Prison. Guantanamo Bay
Prison is set in Cuba, where the Bush Administration believed it to be out of the reach of the
Geneva Conventions. However, it should be in the best interest for everyone as the opening of

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Guantanamo Bay Prison alienated American allies while making new enemies. Guantanamo Bay
has made virtually every western ally of the United States has publically called for its closure,
and the operation of this prison camp has earned the United States round after round of
condemnation by the United Nations Bodies (Closing). Many of Americas allies have looked at
the continuation of Guantanamo Bay as an act against human rights and should be closed. The
prison should also be closed as many detainees are being held in there without any evidence or
proof of them acting in terrorist activities. According to Colin Powell, If it was up to me, I
would close Guantnamo. Not tomorrow, but this afternoon. I'd close it, [] And I would not let
any of those people go [] I would simply move them to the United States and put them into our
federal legal system. The concern was, well then they'll have access to lawyers, then they'll have
access to writs of habeas corpus. So what? Let them. Isn't that what our system is all about?
(The Center). With all the detainees getting no access to their rights in the Constitution and in
international laws within the walls of Guantanamo Bay, people want to close down the prison
and move all the prisoners to a prison within the grounds of America. By moving Guantanamo
Bay, the detainees will gain access to all the rights they deserve.
While there are a lot of Americans who believe that Guantanamo Bay is terrible;
however, there are many other Americans who believe that Guantanamo Bay is great. They say
that Guantanamo Bay holds some of the most lethal terror threats to America, allows us to gain
valuable information from terror suspects, and that if let out, the detainees will go back to
working with the terror groups again. However, these allegations are not entirely true. First of all,
the detainees within the walls are not some of the most lethal terror threats as most of the
prisoners are regular citizens who have been thrown into jail with no proof of them having any
contact with terror groups. This is supported by the fact that of the 166 detainees, only 6 face
any formal charges (Guantanamo: The Legal Mess). Second, many Americans believe that the

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detainees can give us valuable information on enemy tactics and plans. However, we arent
gaining much valuable information from the detainees as the guards are usually using torturous
methods in order to get out an answer that complies with the guards views. An example of this is
from Mohamedou Ould Slahi, who talked in his book about the different types of torture, and
one time he told his interrogator, Just tell me the right answer. Is it good to say yes or to say
no? (Slahi, 47). Lastly, the belief that a lot of the detainees return to the terror groups after their
release is mostly incorrect as a small handful only return to their activities. This is supported
from the fact that about 16.6 percent [of former Guantanamo Bay detainees] are confirmed to
have returned to terrorist activity of some kind (Detainee Release). These reasons show why
Guantanamo Bay Prison is such a terrible place and not a place that is great for this country.
With all the torment and sadness the detainees had to go through, the detainees should be
allowed to fair trials, the torture inflicted upon them should be stopped, and Guantanamo Bay
should be closed. In order to end the fight against terrorism, our first step should be by closing
down Guantanamo Bay Prison and give the detainees the rights they deserve. With the first step,
we can head in a direction where we can see victory as immigrants coming onto American shores
and people around America being happy. Instead of using prisons as our threats, we should
follow President Obamas words that the quiet determination; that strength of character and
bond of fellowship; that refutation of fear -- that is both our sword and our shield (Remarks).

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Works Cited
Website Sources:
Cilluffo, Frank J., Sharon L. Cardash, and Laura O. Khor. Detainee Release and Global Public
Safety: Terrorist Disengagement and Deradicalization ProgramsThe Way Ahead (n.d.):
n. pag. Homeland Security Policy Institure. The George Washington University, 6 June
2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2015. <https://cchs.gwu.edu/sites/cchs.gwu.edu/files/downloades
/Issue%vffb20Brief%2022%20Detainee%20Release%20and%20Global%20Public
%20Safety.pdf>.
Denbeaux, Mark, and Joshua Denbeaux. "Report on Guantanamo Detainees." THE
GUANTANAMO DETAINEES: THE GOVERNMENTS STORY (n.d.): n. pag. Web.
20 Oct. 2015. <http://law.shu.edu/publications/guantanamoRep orts/guantanamo_report
_final_2_08_06.pdf>."
Gatmaytan, Dante. "Crafting Policies for the Guantnamo Bay Detainees: An Interbranch
Perspective." Crafting Policies for the Guantnamo Bay Detainees: An Interbranch
Perspective. N.p., 2010. Web. 15 Oct. 2015. <http://www.academia.edu/3412061/Craftin
g_Policies_for_the_Guant%C3%A1namo_Bay_Detainees_An_Interbranch_Perspective>
Holmes, D., and A. Perron. "Violating Ethics: Unlawful Combatants, National Security and
Health Professionals." Journal of Medical Ethics. BMJ Group, Mar. 2007. Web. 22 Oct.
2015. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2598252/>.
Pearlman, Samantha. "Seattle University Law Review." "Human Rights Violations at
Guantnamo Bay" by Samantha Pearlman. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.

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<http://digitalcommons.law.seattleu.edu/sulr/vol38/iss3/8/>.2013/05/23/remarkspresident-national-defense-university>.
Remarks by the President at the National Defense University." The White House. The White
House, 23 May 2013. Web. 22 Oct. 2015. <https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/
"The Center for the Study of Human Rights in the Americas (CSHRA)." Calls for the Closure of
Guantnamo . Center for the Closure of Guantanamo, n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.
<http://humanrights.ucdavis.edu/projects/the-guantanamo-testimonials-project/calls-forthe-closure-of-guantanamo>.
Seligson, Susan. "Guantanamo: The Legal Mess Behind the Ethical Mess | BU Today | Boston
University." BU Today RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2015. <http://ww w.bu.edu/today/
2013/gitmo-the-legal-mess-behind-the-ethical-mess/>.
Stauffer, Carl, and Hamid Arsalan. "Closing Guantanamo Bay Detention Center: A Restorative
Option?" Closing Guantanamo Bay Detention Center: A Restorative Option? N.p., n.d.
Web. 22 Oct. 2015. <http://www.academia.ed u/4619400/Closing_Guantanamo
_Bay_Detention_Center_A_Restorative_Option>.
Books:
Slahi, Mohamedou Ould, and Larry Siems. Guantnamo Diary. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.