Observing Justice at Guantánamo Bay: Human Rights NGOs and Trial Monitoring at the US Military Commissions

The article critically considers the role of NGOs at the US naval base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. On the basis of observation of pre-trial hearings for the case against Khalid Sheik Mohammed et al.—those allegedly responsible for the September 11 attacks—the article analyses NGOs as trial monitors of the US military commissions set up to deal with ‘alien unprivileged enemy belligerents’. In spite of continued efforts by human rights NGOs and incremental improvements in the military commissions’ institutional arrangements and practice, the article shows how NGOs have become so much a part of the everyday operation of justice at ‘Gitmo’ that they legitimate the military commissions’ claim to be delivering fair and transparent justice.

Drinking from a Poisoned Chalice

The following is an adaptation of the keynote speech given by John G. Baker at the 2018 NATSECDEF Conference, “Preserving Justice in National Security,” hosted by the George Washington University Law School on September 20, 2018. Brigadier General Baker examined whether the United States military commissions, special military tribunals established by President George W. Bush in the aftermath of 9/11 solely to try noncitizen terrorism suspects, were capable of achieving justice. Answering with an empathetic “no,” Brigadier General Baker described an increasingly troubling series of actions taken against defendants who had been secretly held and tortured by the same government that was then seeking their criminal convictions and executions. It is clear from this speech that by the time this piece is published, more, and possibly more troubling events, will have occurred, as the United States continues to pay the price of torture.