ALKARAMA for Human Rights
On the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture (June 26)
The journalist Sami El Haj in Geneva from 24-28 June 2008 to testify about his
7 years of detention without inculpation at Guantanamo
Article (AP, Yahoo News, USA Today)
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ALKARAMA for Human Rights
in collaboration with Civic Aid International Organisation
On the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture (June 26)
The journalist Sami El Haj testifies about his
7 years of detention without inculpation at Guantanamo
Friday 27 June 2008
19:30
Centre International de Conférences de Genève (CICG)
17 Rue de Varembé, 1211 Genève
"The laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times"
Justice Anthony Kennedy, US Supreme Court, June 12th, 2008
Sami El Haj is a journalist working for the Al Jazeera channel. He was kidnapped at the Pakistani border in December 2001 while he was making a documentary about the war in Afghanistan.
Detained arbitrarily for nearly 7 years on the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay and labelled by the Bush administration as "enemy combatant," Sami El Haj has just been released on 1 May 2008 without ever having been charged or convicted of any offence.
Sami El Haj is visiting Geneva in order to:
· Raise awareness about the excesses of the "war against terrorism";
· Testify on the situation in the Guantanamo Bay detention centre ;
· Call for the immediate closure of the camp at Guantanamo and all secret prisons ;
· Seek repair for the hundreds of detainees held without any legal basis ;
· Reaffirm the need to respect human rights in all circumstances.