He is a prisoner being punished in order to protect his jailers.

[kpete]

Going to See a Ghost
Majid Khan and the Abuses of the 'War on Terror'

By Gitanjali S. Gutierrez
Monday, October 15, 2007; Page A15

Today at Guantanamo Bay, I am supposed to meet a ghost.

....................

In 2002, Majid went to Pakistan to marry. On March 5, 2003, he was kidnapped by Pakistani police, who turned him over to the CIA. Our government held him incommunicado at a secret CIA facility for more than three years. According to news reports, former CIA interrogators, government memos and admissions by President Bush, techniques such as simulated drowning, sleep deprivation, extreme temperature fluctuations, sexual humiliation and extended solitary confinement in cramped quarters -- practices that amount to torture under any reasonable definition -- were used at these facilities repeatedly, brutally and systematically. But during this entire period our government denied that Majid even existed. He was a ghost. His family did not know whether he was alive or dead.

Then, as abruptly as he disappeared, Majid reappeared. In September 2006, President Bush announced that Majid, along with 13 other "ghosts," would be transferred to Guantanamo Bay to face a military tribunal. The tribunals are meant to legitimize their detention but accomplish nothing of the sort. Any military commission Majid is to face will follow rules specifically designed to ensure that the government gets the outcome it seeks.

Moreover, the proceedings will be tainted with secrecy. A transparent trial would risk revealing the events surrounding Majid's detention and treatment while in CIA custody. The government's need for secrecy has nothing to do with Majid's alleged wrongdoing -- only the circumstances under which he was captured, hidden away and interrogated. He will continue to be held behind a shroud of secrecy to protect the CIA program under which he was originally detained. He is a prisoner being punished in order to protect his jailers. The logic is terrifying. And it is being done in the name of the American people.

........................

In literature, ghosts are symbols not only of mortality but also of accountability. Ghosts render judgment upon actions and compel us to mend our ways. For three years, Majid Khan was a ghost. Now he has reappeared. Let his terrifying experiences serve to remind us of the danger posed when power goes unchecked -- and of our duty not to be silent but to stand and fight for the fundamental rights that protect us all.

more at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/11/AR2007101101599.html?sub=AR

[druidity33]

1. this quote is salient...

"In the coming months, the Supreme Court will have the opportunity to reject these abuses and restore the rights envisioned by the Founders. I hope that at this critical time, the American people will make it known that while our president may have disdain for our Constitution, we the people still cherish it."



K&R