On Tue, 30/9/08, CTDEnquiries@fco.gov.uk wrote:
Subject: Guantanamo Bay
Thank you for your e-mail about Guantanamo Bay. I
apologise for the delay in replying to you.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office receives
a very large volume of correspondence on matters relating to Guantanamo
Bay. It is unfortunately not
possible for us to respond to all correspondence individually. This e-mail therefore covers our general policy on
Guantanamo Bay as well as the range of specific issues that are raised in
correspondence with us. I hope that
you find it helpful.
Firstly,
let me underline that the UK Government believes that the Guantanamo Bay
detention facility should be closed.
On Tue, 30/9/08, CTDEnquiries@fco.gov.uk wrote:
Subject: Guantanamo Bay
Thank you for your e-mail about Guantanamo Bay. I
apologise for the delay in replying to you.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office receives
a very large volume of correspondence on matters relating to Guantanamo
Bay. It is unfortunately not
possible for us to respond to all correspondence individually. This e-mail therefore covers our general policy on
Guantanamo Bay as well as the range of specific issues that are raised in
correspondence with us. I hope that
you find it helpful.
Firstly,
let me underline that the UK Government believes that the Guantanamo Bay
detention facility should be closed.
The US Government is aware of our position and we welcome their steps to
reduce the numbers of those detained at Guantanamo Bay and to move towards the
closure of the detention facility.
These steps have included an increased emphasis on engagement with third
countries over the transfer and resettlement of those detained.
Nine UK Nationals previously detained at Guantanamo Bay
were returned to the UK in 2004 and 2005 following high level representations to
the US Government. The Foreign
Secretary also wrote to Secretary Rice in August 2007 to request the release and
return to the UK of five men who had previously been lawfully resident
here. Three of these men Mr Jamil
El Banna, Mr Omar Deghayes and Mr Abdennour Sameur returned to the UK in
December following discussions with the US Government.
The two other men covered by that request, Mr Shaker
Aamer and Mr Binyam Mohamed, remain in detention at Guantanamo Bay. We are no longer in active negotiations
for the return of Shaker Aamer to the UK as the US has so far declined to return
him due to security concerns they have in relation to his case. However, we maintain dialogue with them
regarding Mr Aamer’s case and welfare.
The UK’s request for his release and return remains open should the US
position change.
The US is also not presently inclined to agree to our
request for the release and return of
Mr
Binyam Mohamed, again due to security concerns. Mr Mohamed has also now been charged
under the US Military Commissions Act, although the authorities at Guantanamo
Bay have not yet decided whether the case should proceed to trial. You may be aware that Mr Mohamed’s
lawyers have brought Judicial Review proceedings against the Government in order
to obtain any information which could support his defence in any future trial at
Guantanamo Bay, and in particular his allegations of torture and
mistreatment. In preparing for the
Judicial Review, Government departments performed a thorough search of files and
discovered a limited amount of information which we determined was potentially
relevant and could support his defence.
We informed Mr Mohamed’s lawyers about the existence of this information
as soon as possible after it was discovered and brought the material to the
attention of the US Government so that they could assess whether it would be
disclosed to Mr Mohamed through the US legal system. The High Court considered the
information during the Judicial Review and concluded that it related "to a small
part of Mr Mohamed’s account of what happened to him".
The Government has never contested that Mr Mohamed should
have access to this information. As
the Court concluded, we have gone to "very considerable lengths" to ensure that
Mr Mohamed’s legal representatives are able to obtain it through the US
system. This has led to
significant steps by the US Government to guarantee that if Mr Mohamed’s case
proceeds to trial, the US will disclose the information in question to his US
counsel. It remains for the Court
to determine whether, in this context, disclosure by the UK should be ordered.
In the course of the case, there have also been
allegations that the British Security Service was complicit in Mr Mohamed’s
alleged torture. We reject any
accusation that UK security and intelligence officials have been complicit in
torture. The UK unreservedly
condemns the use of torture as a matter of fundamental principle. We take Mr Mohamed’s allegations of
mistreatment very seriously indeed and have raised them with the US Government
and asked them to investigate. They
have also underpinned our approach to his case and the decisions that we have
taken about it.
We
are also aware of the concerns about Mr Mohammed’s health. I can assure you that we have made clear
to the US the importance we attach to ensuring that Mr Mohamed is treated
humanely and receives any medical attention that he may require. The British Embassy in Washington has
been in regular contact with the US Department of Defence about
Mr
Mohamed’s welfare and mental state.
The US assures us that he has access to good medical care as well as
independent evaluation by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
UK officials also visited Mr Mohamed on 23 July. As he is not a UK National this visit
was undertaken in the context of the Government’s request for his release and
return to consider issues related to his welfare. We are in contact with Mr Mohamed’s
family and legal representatives on these
issues.
The Government’s decision to seek the release and return
of former residents was limited to those who were lawfully resident in the UK
prior to their detention. There are
a number of other individuals, such as Mr Ahmed Belbacha, who claim to have
links to the UK and who may have, for example, resided here illegally for a
time. However, since they were not
lawfully resident here the Government has not sought their release and return to
the UK.
Moving
ahead, we will continue our dialogue with the US over how best we can work with
them to achieve the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. We also continue to encourage our allies
to consider taking steps similar to our own to reduce the numbers of those
detained at Guantanamo Bay, for instance accepting the transfer of detainees
cleared for release.
Yours sincerely
Michael
Howells
Counter Terrorism Department
Foreign &
Commonwealth Office
