Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp - Obama's Efforts To Close The Camps

Obama's Efforts To Close The Camps

During his 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama described Guantánamo as a "sad chapter in American history" and promised to close down the prison in 2009. After being elected, Obama reiterated his campaign promise on 60 Minutes and the ABC program "This Week."

On January 22, 2009, President Obama stated that he ordered the government to suspend prosecutions of Guantánamo Bay detainees for 120 days to review all the detainees' cases to determine whether and how each detainee should be prosecuted. A day later, Obama signed an executive order stating that Guantánamo Detention Camp would be closed within the year. His plan encountered a setback when incoming officials of his administration discovered that there were no comprehensive files concerning many of the detainees, so that merely assembling the available evidence about them could take weeks or months. In May, Obama announced that the prosecutions would be revived. In November 2009, President Obama admitted that the "specific deadline" he had set for closure of the Guantánamo Bay camp would be "missed." He said the camp would probably be closed later in 2010, but did not set a specific deadline.

Carol Rosenberg, writing in The Miami Herald, reported that the camps will not be immediately dismantled, when the captives are released or transferred, due to ongoing cases alleging abuse of captives.

In 2009, the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the Standish Maximum Correctional Facility in Standish, Michigan, were being considered as the United States site for more than 220 prisoners. Kansas public officials including both of its senators and governor have objected. Many in Standish with an unemployment rate at the time of 17% welcomed the move.

Obama issued a presidential memorandum dated December 15, 2009, formally closing the detention center and ordering the transfer of prisoners to the Thomson Correctional Center, Thomson, Illinois. Attorney Marc Falkoff, who represents some of the Yemeni detainees, said that his clients might prefer to remain in Guantánamo rather than move into the more stark conditions at Thomson. Illinois Senator Dick Durbin’s office announced on October 2, 2012 that the Obama administration and Federal Bureau of Prisons is buying the Thomson Correctional Center from Illinois for $165 million. An administration official said the deal was to address overcrowding issues, and Thomson would not be used to house any Guantanamo detainees, which the official noted was prohibited by law. “The entire facility will house only inmates (up to 2,800) and be operated solely by BOP. Specifically, it will be used for administrative maximum security inmates and others who have proven difficult to manage in high-security institutions,” said the official, who asked not to be named. This statement was echoed in letter from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. "I have committed that no Guantanamo detainees will be transferred to Thomson. As you know, any such transfer would violate express legal statutory prohibitions," Holder said in a letter to Representative Frank Wolf, who fought the proposal.

The Guantanamo Review Task Force issued a final report on January 22, 2010, but did not publicly release it until May 28, 2010. The report recommended releasing 126 current detainees to their homes or to a third country, 36 be prosecuted in either federal court or a military commission, and 48 be held indefinitely under the laws of war. In addition, 30 Yemenis were approved for release if security conditions in their home country improve.

On January 7, 2011, President Obama signed the 2011 Defense Authorization Bill which contains provisions that place restrictions on the transfer of Guantánamo prisoners to the mainland or to other foreign countries, thus impeding the closure of the detention facility. He strongly objected to the clauses and stated that he would work with Congress to oppose the measures. Regarding the provisions preventing the transfer of Guantánamo prisoners to the mainland, Obama wrote in a statement that the “prosecution of terrorists in Federal court is a powerful tool in our efforts to protect the Nation and must be among the options available to us. Any attempt to deprive the executive branch of that tool undermines our Nation's counterterrorism efforts and has the potential to harm our national security.” Furthermore, he wrote regarding the provisions preventing the transfer of Guantánamo prisoners to other foreign countries that requiring “the executive branch to certify to additional conditions would hinder the conduct of delicate negotiations with foreign countries and therefore the effort to conclude detainee transfers in accord with our national security.” The 2011 Defense Authorization Bill additionally prohibits “the use of funds to modify or construct facilities in the United States to house detainees transferred from United States Naval Station, Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.” Obama signed the 2011 Defense Authorization Bill, but nevertheless the Obama administration "will work with the Congress to seek repeal of these restrictions, will seek to mitigate their effects, and will oppose any attempt to extend or expand them in the future," the president's statement said.

On March 7, 2011, Obama gave the green light to resume military trials, conducted by military officers, with a military judge presiding, of terror suspects detained at Guantánamo Bay. He also signed an executive order that moved to set into law the already existing practice at Guantánamo of holding detainees indefinitely without charge. Comments regarding this executive order say it is progress regarding detainee’s rights but the problem with the order is the president’s decision to formalize the system of indefinite detention. Regarding the law H.R. 1473, the "Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011” which “bars the use of funds for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 to transfer Guantanamo detainees into the United States” and which “bars the use of funds for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 to transfer detainees to the custody or effective control of foreign countries unless specified conditions are met.” the Obama Administration stated on April 15, 2011, that it “will work with the Congress to seek repeal of these restrictions, will seek to mitigate their effects, and will oppose any attempt to extend or expand them in the future.”

In an online New York Times op ed called “Guantánamo Forever?”, published on December 12, 2011 by retired United States Marine Corps Generals Charles C. Krulak and Joseph P. Hoar, both generals said that a provision of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 “would further extend a ban on transfers from Guantánamo, ensuring that this morally and financially expensive symbol of detainee abuse will remain open well into the future. Not only would this bolster Al Qaeda’s recruiting efforts, it also would make it nearly impossible to transfer 88 men (of the 171 held there) who have been cleared for release.” Both Generals concluded their assessment by saying that “We should be moving to shut Guantánamo, not extend it.” On December 31, after signing the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 into law, President Obama voiced his concerns regarding certain provisions of the act including Section 1027 which "renews the bar against using appropriated funds for fiscal year 2012 to transfer Guantanamo detainees into the United States for any purpose. I continue to oppose this provision, which intrudes upon critical executive branch authority to determine when and where to prosecute Guantanamo detainees, based on the facts and the circumstances of each case and our national security interests. . Moreover, this intrusion would, under certain circumstances, violate constitutional separation of powers principles." Obama closed his concerns by stating: "My Administration will aggressively seek to mitigate those concerns through the design of implementation procedures and other authorities available to me as Chief Executive and Commander in Chief, will oppose any attempt to extend or expand them in the future, and will seek the repeal of any provisions that undermine the policies and values that have guided my Administration throughout my time in office."

Early July 2012 reports surfaced that Guantanamo Bay is getting an estimated $40 million communications upgrade because the outdated satellite communications system was overburdened with the military court hearing the cases of the top 9/11 plotters and other war-on-terrorism suspects, as well as the ongoing detention operations. These reports indicated that the US military is preparing for long-term operations at Guantanamo, but that was denied by Army Lt. Col. Todd Breasseale, a spokesman for the Guantanamo military commissions. He said that the communications upgrade project is meant to serve the Guantanamo naval station and not the detention camp, which Washington still “has plans” to close. ABC News pointed out on July 3, 2012 that setbacks in Congress as well as a need to focus on a stagnant economy in the United States have put the issue to close Guantanamo Bay detention camp on the back burner. ABC News asked if Obama still plans on closing Guantanamo, which was answered with yes. National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement, "Obviously Congress has taken a number of steps to prevent the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay, but the President still believes it's in our national security interest and will keep trying". In the same interview, senior ACLU attorney Zachary Katznelson said,"President Obama has enough control and power that he can get these men out today if he has the political will to do so."

The United States government disclosed on September 21, 2012 the names of fifty-five of the eighty-six prisoners cleared for transfer from Guantanamo Bay prison. All of the names made public were of prisoners President Barack Obama’s interagency Guantanamo Bay Review Task Force approved for release from the prison. Previously, the US government had maintained the names of prisoners cleared could not be made public because it would get in the way of diplomatic efforts to repatriate or resettle prisoners in their home country or other countries.