Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns

Statement of solidarity with the prisoners at Guantánamo

Church leaders fast for justice for detainees

Several detainees at the U.S. military’s base at Guantánamo, Cuba began a hunger strike in July to protest their detention and treatment. More than 500 inmates are currently being held at Guantánamo , but only four have been charged with a crime.

Several respected church leaders, including Fr. Ernesto Cardenal and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, have signed the following statement, which expresses support for the prisoners at Guantánamo. Many religious leaders and others have joined a solidarity fast (see partial list below).

For more information: Fr. Joseph Mulligan, S.J., at 011-505-278-6965 ext. 111 (from the U.S.) or at mull@ibw.com.ni. Fr. Mulligan is with the Committee of Solidarity with the Guantánamo Prisoners, based in Managua, Nicaragua.

Statement of solidarity with the prisoners at Guantánamo

August 20, 2005

1. We want to express our solidarity with the prisoners held by the U.S. military at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. We join them in demanding that they be treated with due process according to law and with respect for their rights as human beings and as prisoners. Each prisoner deserves to have the charges against him stated clearly, to have adequate legal counsel, and to have due process in court, with recognition that in U.S. jurisprudence a person is innocent until proven guilty.

2. We invite all people of good will everywhere to organize protests against the unjust treatment of the prisoners at Guantánamo. We support those who are fasting in solidarity with the Guantánamo prisoners, and we would like to suggest to those hunger strikers at Guantánamo that they consider the new fasters their replacements in their struggle. Thus we hope that the Guantánamo prisoners may consider the possibility of ending their fast and saving their lives.

3. We support the prisoners’ protest against the widely known abuses and torture to which some of them have been subjected. These abuses, plus the fact that they are held in solitary confinement for inordinate lengths of time and that they do not know when, if ever, they will be brought to trial and possibly released or sentenced – constitute “cruel and unusual punishment.”

4. We support the worldwide demand for an end to the military occupation of Iraq by U.S., British, and other foreign armies. The killing of tens of thousands of civilians, the wounding of perhaps 100,000 or more people, the torture and murder of Iraqi prisoners in U.S. custody – these and other realities of the occupation are evidence of the massive state terrorism being perpetrated against the people of Iraq.

In these days of August we are profoundly and painfully aware of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki 60 years ago this August 6 and 9 – a massive and horrendous act of terrorism through weapons of mass destruction. We are appalled that the U.S. government – the only one which has ever used the atomic bomb against populations -- continues to develop new nuclear weapons instead of promoting true non-proliferation.

Those of us who are U.S. citizens denounce the crimes and sins of our government and our people. We have a long history of political and military domination of Latin America and other regions of the world – including invasions, support for military coups and dictatorships, training of foreign troops in torture at the U.S. Army’s School of the Americas and other centers – and of economic exploitation through our banks and multinational corporations.

5. Above all, we are struggling in hope and confidence that the demands of the prisoners at Guantánamo for due process and for humane treatment, the demands of Iraqis and of hundreds of millions of people throughout the world for an end to the foreign military occupation of Iraq, and the demands of all humanity for an end to the development and proliferation of nuclear weapons and an end to imperial interventions in sovereign countries – that these demands and hopes will become realities in the near future.

If these demands and hopes, as well as others that are equally essential, are not realized in the near future, there may be no future at all for the next generation.

[end of statement]

Fasters

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, 1984 Nobel Peace Laureate, retired Archbishop of Cape Town, South Africa, has signed the Statement of Solidarity (above) and is fasting on Fridays in solidarity with the Guantánamo prisoners.

In addition to Archbishop Tutu, others in various countries have joined the fast in solidarity with the prisoners engaged in a hunger strike at the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo, Cuba. Some are fasting on liquids only, while others are engaging in a partial fast – taking minimal nourishment necessary to maintain strength.

• Judith Kelly of Arlington, VA, began a liquids-only fast on August 10. Judith is the Mid-Atlantic Regional Associate for Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service and a former Prisoner of Conscience with the School of the Americas Watch movement. She is also affiliated with Pax Christi USA and Amnesty International.
• Danny Malec (Partner, Voluntown Peace Trust), of Voluntown, CT, entered into a liquids-only fast on August 8 which he converted into a partial fast on August 12.
• Fr. Joseph Mulligan, S.J., of the Christian Base Communities of Managua, continues on the liquids-only fast which he began on August 4. Catherine Madden of Matagalpa and Sr. Rita Owczarek, MM of Jinotepe continue on their partial fast.
• Fr. Chepe Owens, S.J., of the Central American University in Managua, Nicaragua, fasted on liquids only from August 6 to August 18.
• Sr. Anne Caroline Wihbey, SND, of Sao Luis, Maranhao, Brazil, began a partial fast on August 8.
• Sr. Chilo de Jesus, of Nandaime, Nicaragua, began a partial fast on August 6.
• Fr. Jim Hoffman of Countryside, IL, USA, began a partial fast on August 15.
• In Ciudad Juárez, México, Sr. Betty Campbell, RSM, and Rev. Peter Hinde, O.Carm., began a water-only fast in early August which they converted into a partial fast.
  

Fr. Ernesto Cardenal (poet, sculptor, and former Minister of Culture of Nicaragua), Fr. Fernando Cardenal, S.J.(national director of Fe y Alegría schools and former Minister of Education of Nicaragua), Bishop Pedro Casaldaliga (retired bishop of Sao Felix, Brazil), Bishop Thomas J. Gumbleton (Auxiliary Bishop, Archdiocese of Detroit), Dora María Téllez (former Minister of Health of Nicaragua), and Archbishop Desmond Tutu (1984 Nobel Peace Laureate, retired Archbishop of Cape Town, South Africa) have joined many others in signing the statement.

Solidarity message from Bishop Pedro Casaldaliga, retired Catholic bishop of Sao Felix, Maranhao, Brazil: “We are with you in heart and spirit in the vigil for life and peace ... Terrorism, real though it may be (and this is even more true if it is only alleged), is not stopped by another kind of cowardly and sadistic terrorism … Let us be united in dialogue, justice, peace. For the survival and common life of our wounded but only humanity.”

********************************

An excellent source of information about the Guantánamo prisoners’ situation is the Guantánamo Action Center of the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York City –
http://www.ccr-ny.org/v2/gac/

Those who have started the fast invite all to join them in a fast of some kind. Even after the Guantánamo hunger strikers return to eating, fasting could be a way of expressing solidarity with them in the physical hardships they are experiencing and a way of deepening one’s commitment to struggle for full respect for their rights. If you decide to fast, please share that good news with the Committee of Solidarity with the Guantánamo Prisoners: mull@ibw.com.ni

***************************

For more information please contact Joe Mulligan, S.J., at 011-505-278-6965 ext. 111 (from the U.S.) or mull@ibw.com.ni. If you are able to circulate the statement for signatures, please send the list to Joe Mulligan.

********************************

Please send copies of this statement, with signatures, to your U.S. representative (U.S. House of Representatives; Washington, D.C. 20515) and senators (U.S. Senate; Washington, D.C. 20510), and to the media.

Statement of solidarity with the prisoners at Guantánamo

Church leaders fast for justice for detainees

Several detainees at the U.S. military’s base at Guantánamo, Cuba began a hunger strike in July to protest their detention and treatment. More than 500 inmates are currently being held at Guantánamo , but only four have been charged with a crime.

Several respected church leaders, including Fr. Ernesto Cardenal and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, have signed the following statement, which expresses support for the prisoners at Guantánamo. Many religious leaders and others have joined a solidarity fast (see partial list below).

For more information: Fr. Joseph Mulligan, S.J., at 011-505-278-6965 ext. 111 (from the U.S.) or at mull@ibw.com.ni. Fr. Mulligan is with the Committee of Solidarity with the Guantánamo Prisoners, based in Managua, Nicaragua.

Statement of solidarity with the prisoners at Guantánamo

August 20, 2005

1. We want to express our solidarity with the prisoners held by the U.S. military at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. We join them in demanding that they be treated with due process according to law and with respect for their rights as human beings and as prisoners. Each prisoner deserves to have the charges against him stated clearly, to have adequate legal counsel, and to have due process in court, with recognition that in U.S. jurisprudence a person is innocent until proven guilty.

2. We invite all people of good will everywhere to organize protests against the unjust treatment of the prisoners at Guantánamo. We support those who are fasting in solidarity with the Guantánamo prisoners, and we would like to suggest to those hunger strikers at Guantánamo that they consider the new fasters their replacements in their struggle. Thus we hope that the Guantánamo prisoners may consider the possibility of ending their fast and saving their lives.

3. We support the prisoners’ protest against the widely known abuses and torture to which some of them have been subjected. These abuses, plus the fact that they are held in solitary confinement for inordinate lengths of time and that they do not know when, if ever, they will be brought to trial and possibly released or sentenced – constitute “cruel and unusual punishment.”

4. We support the worldwide demand for an end to the military occupation of Iraq by U.S., British, and other foreign armies. The killing of tens of thousands of civilians, the wounding of perhaps 100,000 or more people, the torture and murder of Iraqi prisoners in U.S. custody – these and other realities of the occupation are evidence of the massive state terrorism being perpetrated against the people of Iraq.

In these days of August we are profoundly and painfully aware of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki 60 years ago this August 6 and 9 – a massive and horrendous act of terrorism through weapons of mass destruction. We are appalled that the U.S. government – the only one which has ever used the atomic bomb against populations -- continues to develop new nuclear weapons instead of promoting true non-proliferation.

Those of us who are U.S. citizens denounce the crimes and sins of our government and our people. We have a long history of political and military domination of Latin America and other regions of the world – including invasions, support for military coups and dictatorships, training of foreign troops in torture at the U.S. Army’s School of the Americas and other centers – and of economic exploitation through our banks and multinational corporations.

5. Above all, we are struggling in hope and confidence that the demands of the prisoners at Guantánamo for due process and for humane treatment, the demands of Iraqis and of hundreds of millions of people throughout the world for an end to the foreign military occupation of Iraq, and the demands of all humanity for an end to the development and proliferation of nuclear weapons and an end to imperial interventions in sovereign countries – that these demands and hopes will become realities in the near future.

If these demands and hopes, as well as others that are equally essential, are not realized in the near future, there may be no future at all for the next generation.

[end of statement]

Fasters

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, 1984 Nobel Peace Laureate, retired Archbishop of Cape Town, South Africa, has signed the Statement of Solidarity (above) and is fasting on Fridays in solidarity with the Guantánamo prisoners.

In addition to Archbishop Tutu, others in various countries have joined the fast in solidarity with the prisoners engaged in a hunger strike at the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo, Cuba. Some are fasting on liquids only, while others are engaging in a partial fast – taking minimal nourishment necessary to maintain strength.

• Judith Kelly of Arlington, VA, began a liquids-only fast on August 10. Judith is the Mid-Atlantic Regional Associate for Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service and a former Prisoner of Conscience with the School of the Americas Watch movement. She is also affiliated with Pax Christi USA and Amnesty International.
• Danny Malec (Partner, Voluntown Peace Trust), of Voluntown, CT, entered into a liquids-only fast on August 8 which he converted into a partial fast on August 12.
• Fr. Joseph Mulligan, S.J., of the Christian Base Communities of Managua, continues on the liquids-only fast which he began on August 4. Catherine Madden of Matagalpa and Sr. Rita Owczarek, MM of Jinotepe continue on their partial fast.
• Fr. Chepe Owens, S.J., of the Central American University in Managua, Nicaragua, fasted on liquids only from August 6 to August 18.
• Sr. Anne Caroline Wihbey, SND, of Sao Luis, Maranhao, Brazil, began a partial fast on August 8.
• Sr. Chilo de Jesus, of Nandaime, Nicaragua, began a partial fast on August 6.
• Fr. Jim Hoffman of Countryside, IL, USA, began a partial fast on August 15.
• In Ciudad Juárez, México, Sr. Betty Campbell, RSM, and Rev. Peter Hinde, O.Carm., began a water-only fast in early August which they converted into a partial fast.
  

Fr. Ernesto Cardenal (poet, sculptor, and former Minister of Culture of Nicaragua), Fr. Fernando Cardenal, S.J.(national director of Fe y Alegría schools and former Minister of Education of Nicaragua), Bishop Pedro Casaldaliga (retired bishop of Sao Felix, Brazil), Bishop Thomas J. Gumbleton (Auxiliary Bishop, Archdiocese of Detroit), Dora María Téllez (former Minister of Health of Nicaragua), and Archbishop Desmond Tutu (1984 Nobel Peace Laureate, retired Archbishop of Cape Town, South Africa) have joined many others in signing the statement.

Solidarity message from Bishop Pedro Casaldaliga, retired Catholic bishop of Sao Felix, Maranhao, Brazil: “We are with you in heart and spirit in the vigil for life and peace ... Terrorism, real though it may be (and this is even more true if it is only alleged), is not stopped by another kind of cowardly and sadistic terrorism … Let us be united in dialogue, justice, peace. For the survival and common life of our wounded but only humanity.”

********************************

An excellent source of information about the Guantánamo prisoners’ situation is the Guantánamo Action Center of the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York City –
http://www.ccr-ny.org/v2/gac/

Those who have started the fast invite all to join them in a fast of some kind. Even after the Guantánamo hunger strikers return to eating, fasting could be a way of expressing solidarity with them in the physical hardships they are experiencing and a way of deepening one’s commitment to struggle for full respect for their rights. If you decide to fast, please share that good news with the Committee of Solidarity with the Guantánamo Prisoners: mull@ibw.com.ni

***************************

For more information please contact Joe Mulligan, S.J., at 011-505-278-6965 ext. 111 (from the U.S.) or mull@ibw.com.ni. If you are able to circulate the statement for signatures, please send the list to Joe Mulligan.

********************************

Please send copies of this statement, with signatures, to your U.S. representative (U.S. House of Representatives; Washington, D.C. 20515) and senators (U.S. Senate; Washington, D.C. 20510), and to the media.