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Diary of a Guantánamo Attorney

By H. Candace Gorman

I fell into the world of Guantánamo in October 2005. The Chicago Council of Lawyers had organized a luncheon discussion on the legal issues surrounding the infamous detention facility at the U.S. naval base in eastern Cuba. I received an e-mail thanking me for my attendance (I should have gone but didn’t) and asking for volunteers to represent the nearly… return to article

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    GITMO as a whole needs to be closed because Cuba has asked us since 1959 to leave.

    United States Posted by blondemike on Jan 16, 2007 at 12:57 PM

    If we send you cards for Mr. Al-Ghizzawi, are you able to deliver them to him?

    United States Posted by grellet on Jan 18, 2007 at 10:16 PM

    I’d love to visit Cuba but not that part of the island.

    United States Posted by blondemike on Jan 19, 2007 at 10:37 AM

    Sorry ... my question was addressed to the attorney!  Anyway, I sent her an email.

    United States Posted by grellet on Jan 19, 2007 at 11:22 AM

    What can we citizens do to stop this horror. I feel so helpless. I just read about Whitewater victim Susan McDougal and was shocked at the abuse she suffered from Kenneth Starr even before patriot act!. Article at truthdig.com.  What can we do to stop this?

    United States Posted by kitkat on Jan 21, 2007 at 1:06 PM

    Just keep fighting, raising hell, publicizing, nothing magic, all the usual stuff.

    United States Posted by blondemike on Jan 22, 2007 at 7:01 PM

    TB? They have visiting lawyers wear masks, right? Not rinky-dink paint masks, but tight fitting special green TB masks, right? TB is airborne.The last time I checked, the hospital protocol for being in the same room as someone with active TB involved wearing gown, gloves, and mask.

    Hepatitis B has no treatment, but there is a vaccine.  The lawyers going in there have all had a series of 3 shots, right? Hepatitis B is spread by contact with blood, usually contaminated needles. Junkies with Hepatitis B often have TB too because of poor nutritional status.

    But why am I bringing this up at all? I’m sure the U.S government is profoundly motivated to provide attorneys working with detainees all the medical info they need to protect their own health.

    United States Posted by Nijma on Jan 30, 2007 at 11:22 AM

    That is also the same recommended protocol for being in the same room with a neocon.

    United States Posted by blondemike on Jan 31, 2007 at 2:41 PM
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Article Appeared in this Issue

Full contents
Past issues

Also by H. Candace Gorman
  • A Kinder, Gentler Torture
  • The Hippocratic Oath Dies in Gitmo
  • Catch-22 in the 21st Century
    Government censors are making like Joseph Heller's character Yossarian and blacking out random information in letters from Guantánamo that has nothing to do with "national security"
  • Third Time’s the Charm?
    The military didn't even bother to retain most of the documents from the Combatant Status Review Tribunals conducted in 2004, so the government has no documents showing any reason for holding these men
  • Suicide and Spin Doctors
    There are many ways for the oppressor to force himself into the mind of the oppressed, but one surefire way is through indefinite detention. Never knowing when--or if--you will be released is a cruel form of psychological torture and allows you to keep hope while simultaneously filling you with fear
  • Inside the Secret Facility
    In an Orwellian twist, the U.S. government monitors all correspondence between a Guantánamo attorney and her client
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