Letter from The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights re: Observations to Precautionary Measures filed on Behalf of Guantanamo Detainees

03/32/02 TUE 17:14 FAX 202 458 3802OOAS ICHR V1024 UNCLASSIFIED RELEASED IN FULL Santiago Canton Executive Secretary Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Organisation of American States 1889- F Street, N.W. Washington D.C. 20006 • 5 March 2002 Dear Sir Center for Constitutional Rights, Center for Justice and International Law and Others Request for Precautionary Measures We refer to Request for Precautionary Measures filed with the Commission on the 25 February 2002. Enclosed please find Observations to Precautionary Measures. In addition, the following individuals and institutions would like to join as petitioners after carefully reviewing the petition for precautionary measures filed on behalf on the detainees on Guatanamo on February 25, 2002. S lac/ L u t Ovush Stephen Sone)-, jC41-li Louise Christian Ben Cooper Christian Fisher Solicitors The Bar Council Human Rights 42 Museum Street Committee of England and Wales Bloomsbury 10-11 Grays Inn Square London, WCIA 1LY Gray's Inn United Kingdom London, WCIR 5JD Telephone: 44 (0)207 831 1750 United Kingdom Telephone; 44 (0)207 395 9508 elan ein . clA 1-u t al) c. areth Peirce Sidiki Kaba, President Birnberg Peirce and Partners Solicitors Antoine Bernard, Executive Director 14 Inverness Street Jeanne Sulzer, International Justice Camden Town Program Officer London, NW 1 7H.I International Federation for Human Rights — FIDH United Kingdom 17, passage de la main d'or Telephone: 44 (0)207 911 0166 75011 Paris France Telephone: (33) 1 43 55 25 18 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE DOS-001788 REVIEW AUTHORITY: HARRY R MELONE UNCLASSIFIED DATE/CASE ID: 02 DEC 2004 200303827 414 / 1 Z U Z Tut; 17:14 FAX 202 458 3992.OAS ICHR 0 025 UNCLASSIFIED Petitioners submitted a Request for Precautionary Measures in the above matter on 25 February, 2002. Following submission of this document, Petitioners consider it necessary to clarify certain -matters raised therein and do so in the following Observations: 1 At page 8 of the Petition, Petitioners refer to a newspaper article in which the International Committee of the Red Cross are_[is] quoted as saying that a "court" . has to make any decision on prisoner-of-war status. Petitioners wish to clarify with this Commission that they realize that pursuant to the Third Geneva Convention it is a "competent tribunal" rather than a "court" that is required to make such a decision. The newspaper article possibly misquoted what the ICRC said. 2. At page 13 of the Petition, Petitioners note "the military commissions fail to provide minimal guarantees of due process." From various press reports,' Petitioners are aware that the United States is considering passing regulations pursuant to section 4(b) of the Military Order that could possibly improve the procedural protections afforded by such commissions. From the information available however, Petitioners do not consider that these improvements will rectify the fhndamental defects of the Order. 3. Finally, in regards to issues raised on the status of those detained, Petitioners wish to clarify with this Commission that should the United States refuse to recognize those persons detained as prisoners-of-war under the Third Geneva Convention then they should be recognized as civilians pursuant to the Fourth Geneva Convention and not as "unlawful combatants". 2 Petitioners contend, contrary to the position of the United States, that international humanitarian law does not recognize such a status. Respectfully submitted: March 5, 2002 I See e.g. Katharine Q. Seelye, Draft Rules for Tribunals Ease Worries, but Not All, The New . York Times, December 29, 2001 available at littp://vvww.crimeIytuccorntdraftease_html 2 See: Delalic et al. (I.T -96-21) -Celebici", Judgment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (16 November 1998), para. 271 3 DOS-001789 UNCLASSIFIED u.reiLevh Lot. 17 :lb FAA ZuZ 456 3UOZ Cib026 UNC15IFIED Icrauxtri C,atui-efl So Sandra Coliver Ralph G. Steinhardt Joshua Sondheimer Arthur Selwyn Miller Research Professor of Law Center for Justice & Accountability Co-Director, Oxford Programme in 870 Market St., Suite 684 . International Human Rights Law San Francisco, CA 94102 The George Washington University Law School Telephone: (415) 544-0444 Burns 421 2000 H Street,N.W. _.Washington, D.C. 20052 Telephone: (202) 994-5 .13 era-Lath WOO 01 9. I William J. Aceves /Prof. Bert Lockwood Associate Professor of Law Distinguished Service, California Western School of Law • Professor of Law and Director, 225 Cedar Street Urban Morgan Institute for Human Rights Sari Diego, CA 92101 University of Cincinnati College of Law Telephone:(619) 525-1589 Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0040 Telephone: (513)556-0068 cricien n aritiCiA,LOt ssbcooL+ At Roger-Normand, Executive Director ' David Weissbrodt The Center for Economic and Social Rights Fredrikson & Byron Professor of Law 162 Montague St. Second Floor and Co-Director, Human Rights Center Brooklyn, New York, NY 11201 University of Minnesota Telephone: (718) 237 9145 [but not signing on behalf of the University of Minnesota] 229-19th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55455 Telephone: (612) 625-5027 0 hAAA PR l' ULt CSP obin Phillips, Acting Executive Director Jiirhes.1. Silk Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights Deena It Hurwitz 310 Fourth Avenue South Suite 1000 Allard K. Lowenstein Minneapolis, MN 55401 International Human Rights Law Clinic Telephone: (612) 341-3301 Yale Law School P.O. Box 208215 New Haven, CT 06520-8215 Telephone: (203) 432-7480 Kindly acknowledge receipt. Sincerely, lrf/i 0 . genter for Constitutional Rignis Center for Justice and International Law DOS-001790 UNCLASSIFIED