PRISON OF TERROR: The Baltic States are considering providing safe haven to some of the 245 detainees from the notorious U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay. President Barack Obama recently announced plans to shut down the controversial facility, which faced international condemnation and allegations of human rights abuses.
RIGA - The Baltic states are debating the possibility of taking in former detainees of the notorious U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay who cannot be returned to their home country for fear of torture or persecution.
It has emerged that the U.S. administration requested Lithuania accept two camp inmates, believed to be Uzbeks imprisoned for suspected involvement in terrorism activities.
There are currently four Uzbeks in custody at Guantanamo. All have since been cleared for release. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Vygaudas Usackas has declined to confirm the nationality of the prisoners, saying only they posed no threat to Lithuania's national security.
Both Latvia and Estonia have also said they would not rule out the possibility of accepting former camp inmates under a common EU agreement.
Executive Director of Lithuania's Human Rights Monitoring Institute Henrikas Mickevicius warned there remained many legal unknowns surrounding the transfer of Guantanamo prisoners.
Mickevicius called on the U.S. administration to process remaining detainees under U.S. law to establish their legal international standing.
Without legal clarification, the human rights of prisoners would continue to be undermined, and the legality of any prisoner transfer scheme could come under question, said Mickevicius.
"From a legal point of view we need to establish the status of detainees. At the moment we are in a situation where they are neither asylum seekers, POWS, refugees or detainees. Unless we have resolution on this the shadow of illegality will always follow them wherever they go and whatever country they go to," said Mickevicius.
"This isn't Lithuania's problem this is an American problem. Detainees should go through the proper process then there will be no dark shadow following them. They may voluntarily apply for asylum…from a human rights point of view the situation is clear," he said.
Usackas maintains refuge could only be provided if the inmates gave consent to the potential move and adequate evidence could be provided of the threat they faced in their homeland.
Newly elected U.S. President Barack Obama signed an order in January to close the Cuba-based facility within 12 months. Guantanamo has been dogged by allegations of human rights abuses and torture.
Although the Lithuanian government has yet to make a final decision on the matter, the State Defense Council earlier this month authorized the Foreign Ministry to hold discussions with U.S. officials on hosting Guantanamo prisoners.
INTERNATIONAL CONDEMNATION
International human rights groups have for several years been pushing for the closure of the secretive detention camp, which was established by the Central Intelligence Agency in 2002 to house and interrogate international terrorist suspects.
In a resolution adopted in Strasbourg on Feb. 4 the European Parliament welcomed Obama's decision to close the detention center and called on EU member states to be prepared to accept Guantanamo inmates at the request of the U.S. administration.
Latvian Foreign Minister Maris Riekstins has also applauded the closure of the high security military prison. He told The Baltic Times, however, speculation on whether Latvia would accept former detainees was premature.
Riekstins said no formal request had been received from the U.S., although he conceded international law experts were currently reviewing national legislation.
Latvian Foreign Ministry experts are expected to deliver their legal opinion in the coming weeks.
"Regarding possible acceptance of the prisoners, no practical steps have been made yet. Nobody has approached us with such a request. Speaking about acceptance of any prisoners in Europe or Latvia, we are currently theoretically reviewing our legal possibilities as the idea is that the EU member states should have a common stance in case the Americans make such a request," said Riekstins.
Latvia is currently in discussion with other EU member states to reach a common position regarding the potential conditions and legislation in relation to anticipated prisoner resettlement in the bloc.
"It is important also to reach a common agreement on the freedom of movement within the whole Schengen zone of the potential Guantanamo detainees accepted by a single EU member state. If one EU member state decides to accept a Guantanamo detainee, the provisions of his or her freedom of movement within other EU member states should be clearly set," said Riekstins.
Debate on Latvia's capacity to accept former inmates of the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo has led to a wide range of opinions.
Latvian Prison Administration chief Visvaldis Pukite told the Baltic News Service Latvia's jails would be prepared to accept former prison inmates if the government allocated adequate funding.
Pukite said Latvian prison systems would need to be upgraded and support services, including specially trained prison guards with foreign language skills, would need to be in place to ensure ease of transition for detainees.
However, Latvian Justice Minister Gaidis Berzins is critical of plans to take in former Guantanamo inmates.
In a statement to TBT, Berzins said Latvia's prison infrastructure was so rundown it barely met the necessary conditions for local inmates.
He said prisons were also facing increased pressure amid rising crime rates and Latvia's deteriorating economic situation.
AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE
Of the 245 detainees remaining at Guantanamo, 60 are deemed "hard cases," meaning they have been cleared for release by the U.S. but cannot go home due to a concern that they will not be safe. The detainees are from countries including Algeria, China, Egypt, Iraq, Libya, the Palestinian territories, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and Uzbekistan.
While EU states have unilaterally condemned the high security facility, many, including Denmark and the U.K., have balked at providing safe haven to prison inmates.
Portugal, Ireland and Switzerland remain among the most vocal supporters of the transfer and resettlement of low-risk Guantanamo prisoners to Europe.
Meanwhile, Italy, Spain, Hungary and the Czech Republic have said they would consider accepting detainees, but only under a plan backed by the EU.
The U.S. Defense Department did not respond to request from TBT for comment.
