COLGAN: These are the fiercely guarded waters that mark a border between America and Cuba.
SOLDIER: This heres the north water gate. It separates Guantanamo Bay from the rest of Cuba. Youve got just the top of it sticking up over the tree line. That is the Cuban mop tower, same as our marine navy observation tower, which is the one with the American flags there.
COLGAN: The American naval base here is a fortress. Yet its not the Cubans or outsiders the U.S. fears most, but an enemy within men it labels terrorists.
JACK: All over here, thats American Cuba I guess youd want to call it, thats Guantanamo. See off in the distance there, the mountains and stuff like that, is communist Cuba.
COLGAN: The U.S. Navy has leased this depressingly hot, mosquito ridden strip of land for one hundred years. All talk of giving it back to the Cubans died early last year when the old naval base was reborn as a prison camp. The first prisoners from the war in Afghanistan arrived in January at what was called Camp X-ray. They, and all who followed, had been denied prisoner of war status by the U.S. government. Denied access to lawyers, to their families and to the outside world.
CAVOLI: The big problem we have is that all these people are in a legal limbo, they cannot challenge their detention and theyve been kept until now since 15 months outside judicial process completely.
COLGAN: More than six hundred and sixty prisoners from forty-two nations accused of being Taliban fighters or terrorists. Country after country have demanded the U.S. charge them or release them.
HAYAUDDIN: We are of the opinion that the Pakistanis there
are not hardened terrorists or criminals, they are misguided people who are caught at the wrong place at the wrong time.
COLGAN: The President of the United States has ignored it all, using his war on terrorism to justify denying them basic rights.
MARGUILES: There are few principles more firmly enshrined in the Constitution and in international law than the prohibition against arbitrary indefinite detention based on executive authority alone.
COLGAN: It sets a precedent now widely believed to undermine the Geneva Convention that protects all prisoners of war. In the months since the world first saw hooded and shackled prisoners arrive here, the U.S. military has worked hard to change perceptions, replacing the tents with a more solid facility, Camp Delta. It also ensures prying eyes can no longer see the prisoners inside. Every effort has been made to convince the outside world the prisoners are being treated humanly, despite being denied POW status. For the mostly Muslim prisoners, religious needs are met, including in food preparation, and rewards are given for information. (To interviewee) So really youre using food as an incentive to pay or as an incentive to move to a lower security facility?
OFFICER JAMES KLUCK: Thats correct, yes and thats all directed by the intelligence folks, the interpreters and interrogators.
FIDELL: The administrations position has been that it is giving the gist, lets say, of the Geneva Convention protections. Nobodys being tortured. People are being fed properly, people are being housed and so forth, and their religious needs, for example, are being met, all of which you would associate with the Geneva Convention. I would say that theyre being given what I call Geneva lite protection.
COLGAN: The fact remains, humanitarian agencies believe all are entitled to prisoner of war status and the right to a trial or release. Whats more, they believe the U.S. has conveniently blurred the lines between Taliban fighters and Al Qaeda suspects.
ROTH: The Pentagon claims that theres no doubt that no one at Guantanamo is entitled to POW status, but that is blatantly false on its face. If you look for example at the Taliban detainees, the Third Geneva Convention says that the regular members of an armed force are automatically entitled to POW status. The Pentagons absolute refusal to countenance that obvious conclusion is a blatant violation of the Third Geneva Convention.
COLGAN: Visiting the camp is like stepping into a twilight zone. Few questions about the prisoners are answered directly.
COLONEL ADOLPH McQUEEN: I cannot confirm any identities of detainees, both by name or location.
COLGAN: We can talk to young camp guards, but never alone. (To interviewee) Is there a word that youd use to describe the atmosphere inside the detention centre?
MELISSA SHEPHERD: If there is, I wouldnt know what the word would be.
COLGAN: Is it tense?
MELISSA SHEPHERD: It can be tense, it can be stressful, but other than that I wouldnt know.
COLGAN: The military agreed to allow us inside the prison camp, but refused to let us film. We are allowed to record audio; later the military provided its own pictures.
SOLDIER: Were entering Camp 1 here and the only block I have to show you is a block thats being renovated.
COLGAN: Amid the noise of repairs on the cell block, were taken to what looks like a wire mess cage with no solid walls. (To soldier) So how many hours a day would they spend inside what looks like a cage?
SOLDIER: They would spend the majority of their day here. Theyre taken out for showers and recreational periods and if they need to go to the clinic theyre taken out for those but other than that this is where they remain.
COLGAN: They get just two exercise breaks a week of twenty minutes -- alone.
SOLDIER: They can walk, kick the soccer ball, whatever they need to do and theyre brought back in here, but they spend the majority of their day in this cell right here.
COLGAN: Their cells are 2.4 metres long and less than two metres wide. Floodlights remain on 24 hours a day.
MILLER: As were going through this very detailed process of assessment for each detainee that is here and we are determining different levels of responsibility and different levels of action in the global war on terrorism.
COLGAN: Does it concern you that at some point detention becomes punishment, because it has dragged on for so long?
MILLER: This global war on terrorism is ongoing, and as we said, we work as quickly and as prudently as we can to ensure that we can gain this intelligence to win this global war on terrorism and ensure that the enemy combatants that we have detained here are not a threat to our country, to our allies or to our families.
COLGAN: The war on terror has no finite terms; can some of these people be held indefinitely?
MILLER: The war on terror will be ongoing until the day that we win. The duration of that, well have to see; we hope it ends tomorrow.
COLGAN: Were told the detainees are given high quality medical and psychological care. Seventeen prisoners have attempted suicide, some more than once. The military does not inform their families. It was to Foreign Correspondent that the Commander confirmed publicly for the first time that children are being held at Guantanamo Bay.
COLGAN: Are there any juveniles in Guantanamo?
MILLER: There are enemy juvenile combatants here. For our definition, that is any one who is less than sixteen years old.
COLGAN: So there are people under 16 years of age here who are enemy combatants?
MILLER: Thats correct.
COLGAN: The only independent body allowed inside the camp is the International Red Cross which is effectively gagged. To guarantee ongoing access to prisoners around the world, the Red Cross agrees to report what it finds only to the authorities holding the prisoners.
CAVOLI: To see them still after 15 months in the same situation, meaning with nothing moving in a certain way, its extremely worrisome.
COLGAN: The Red Cross believes the war in Afghanistan was over when the Taliban fell.
DANIEL CAVOLI: We have distributed and collected more than four thousand Red Cross messages from Guantanamo.
COLGAN: It says the Taliban soldiers, at least, should now be sent home in accordance with the Geneva Convention.
TERRY HICKS [Looking at letters from son, David]: It does say hes okay in that one doesnt he?
BEVERLEY HICKS : Yes. [Reading letter from son, David] I am in a difficult situation.
COLGAN: Half a world away in Adelaide, a family is waiting. Theyve been waiting for more than a year.
TERRY HICKS: Hes trying to write information, but hes not sure whether its going to be censored.
BEVERLEY HICKS: Are these all the letters weve had from David?
TERRY HICKS: Yes.
BEVERLEY HICKS: And this is the very first letter weve had which come on the 21st of January 2002 where he says Im sorry for any inconvenience or embarrassment I have caused to you. Please forgive me for this.
COLGAN: Beverley and Terry Hicks do not believe their son David is a terrorist.
TERRY HICKS [Reading letter from son, David]: P.S. Please send some photos so I can reflect on such as family snapshots.
COLGAN: The 27-year-old is among the longest serving prisoners at Guantanamo. A convert to Islam, they know he was fighting for the Taliban in the war in Afghanistan when he was captured.
TERRY HICKS: Oh they say theyre trying to find the link between David and Al Qaeda, but up to now theres no link been established.
BEVERLEY HICKS: Thats too tall for David.
TERRY HICKS: Yes its definitely not him. His nose is too big.
BEVERLEY HICKS: No, look at that, thats not him.
COLGAN: Theyve been allowed no contact with their son apart from letters. Now, even those are failing to get through returned unopened since December. The only chance for a glimpse, through grainy pictures filmed by the media.
TERRY HICKS: I believe the justification was there to start with, but as time goes on, I think that justification is now gone. They should be now starting to release them back to their own countries. I mean, its been 15 months, thats a long time. If they still havent got information and the ways and means that they have of extracting information, then hes got nothing to say.
COLGAN: In July, it will be two years since Maha Habib last saw her husband, Egyptian born Sydney man, Mamdouh Habib. Hes the second of two Australians in Guantanamo Bay. He went to Pakistan, she says, to find better religious education for their four children.
MAHA: He wasnt going to stay for three months, but you know, to see if it was good and suitable for the whole family to go for a couple of years or so, and he would have came back. [Reading letter from Mamdouh Habib] Darling, take care of yourself and your children and pray together. I wish to see you all very soon, inshallah.
COLGAN: Its alleged Mamdouh Habib travelled to Afghanistan and back to Pakistan where he was arrested and later handed to the Americans. Hes been interrogated by American and Australian intelligence officials, but has received no consular assistance.
MAHA: Hes not a terrorist, hes not, hes just a family man, a decent family man, a Muslim, okay and he believes in his, you know, he believes in being honest and truthful and hes worried about his kids. I cant see anything wrong with that, thats not a crime.
COLGAN: There have been no details given as to what hes done or why hes still being held.
MAHA: Make us rest, let us rest, you know. We just want to find out, have they got anything against him? Show us and prove it. Is that too much to ask?
COLGAN: Australias Embassy in Washington has close and regular contact with the Pentagon, but has refused to provide Foreign Correspondent with any information on the Hicks or Habib cases.
TERRY HICKS: The government have done absolutely nothing as far as Im concerned to help out an Australian citizen and Davids an Australian citizen.
MAHA: Im not asking them to do a favour for me, Im asking them to do their job, you know, for a person who is entitled. You just give him his rights, hes an Australian citizen, hes entitled to be treated like one.
COLGAN: On the other side of the world, a man they have never seen is defending the two men, clients he has never seen.
MARGUILES: Not only have I not met them I dont know if youre aware of this -- they dont know that litigations even going on, they dont even know that the litigation is going on on their behalf and were not allowed to tell them.
COLGAN: None of those in Guantanamo Bay is American, and a U.S. court has ruled they have no right of access to American courts.
MARGUILES: The governments position is that there is no right of any court in this country or anywhere else in the world to determine the lawfulness of their detention. That is they can be held at the unfettered discretion of the United States military for as long as the military sees fit, and there has never been any proof of any wrongdoing at all.
COLGAN: On the day of this interview, the legal team filed an appeal with the District Court in Washington. Its one of just two legal avenues left open to the Australians.
MARGUILES: If their legal avenues are not available to them, and the United States stands firm in its resistance to diplomatic entreaties, then they could be held that way for the rest of their lives.
COLGAN: Other countries view it differently, among them Swedish parliamentarians are lobbying to bring home their one detainee, calling American delays inexcusable. Spain has asked for its one national to be sent home. The Saudis have more than one hundred people there, and want them all repatriated. Pakistan, which helped round up more than four hundred of those now in Guantanamo, says sixty-one of its own nationals should be released.
ASAD HAYAUDDIN: Most of these people were cannon fodder or foot soldiers. These were not mastermind hardened terrorists. Most of them probably did not even know the ABC of warfare or guerrilla warfare, and they were caught up in a whirlpool of hysteria and Jihad fervour, egged on by their local mullahs in the villages.
MARGUILES: You dont just hold people by casting them into a black hole and say that no one can oversee what they do because we are the U.S. military. Thats not the rule of law thats military rule, thats what it is.
COLGAN: At night, even the noise of a thunder storm doesnt cover the din coming from the cells in Camp Delta. The fact is the United States may well be holding men who have committed terrorist acts and who remain a threat to the U.S. The problem is, we simply dont know. Each night, before their evening movie, the troops on Guantanamo Bay are reassured theyre doing the right thing.
WOMAN SOLDIER Military Spiel: My job is to defend my country and theres nothing I could say or do that would make me prouder than what Im doing right now.
COLGAN: But the rest of the world has no such reassurances. The release of some prisoners and not others, the willingness to cast aside long held conventions, these have caused distrust and concern. How can the world trust a process it cannot see?
SOLDIER: This heres the north water gate. It separates Guantanamo Bay from the rest of Cuba. Youve got just the top of it sticking up over the tree line. That is the Cuban mop tower, same as our marine navy observation tower, which is the one with the American flags there.
COLGAN: The American naval base here is a fortress. Yet its not the Cubans or outsiders the U.S. fears most, but an enemy within men it labels terrorists.
JACK: All over here, thats American Cuba I guess youd want to call it, thats Guantanamo. See off in the distance there, the mountains and stuff like that, is communist Cuba.
COLGAN: The U.S. Navy has leased this depressingly hot, mosquito ridden strip of land for one hundred years. All talk of giving it back to the Cubans died early last year when the old naval base was reborn as a prison camp. The first prisoners from the war in Afghanistan arrived in January at what was called Camp X-ray. They, and all who followed, had been denied prisoner of war status by the U.S. government. Denied access to lawyers, to their families and to the outside world.
CAVOLI: The big problem we have is that all these people are in a legal limbo, they cannot challenge their detention and theyve been kept until now since 15 months outside judicial process completely.
COLGAN: More than six hundred and sixty prisoners from forty-two nations accused of being Taliban fighters or terrorists. Country after country have demanded the U.S. charge them or release them.
HAYAUDDIN: We are of the opinion that the Pakistanis there
are not hardened terrorists or criminals, they are misguided people who are caught at the wrong place at the wrong time.
COLGAN: The President of the United States has ignored it all, using his war on terrorism to justify denying them basic rights.
MARGUILES: There are few principles more firmly enshrined in the Constitution and in international law than the prohibition against arbitrary indefinite detention based on executive authority alone.
COLGAN: It sets a precedent now widely believed to undermine the Geneva Convention that protects all prisoners of war. In the months since the world first saw hooded and shackled prisoners arrive here, the U.S. military has worked hard to change perceptions, replacing the tents with a more solid facility, Camp Delta. It also ensures prying eyes can no longer see the prisoners inside. Every effort has been made to convince the outside world the prisoners are being treated humanly, despite being denied POW status. For the mostly Muslim prisoners, religious needs are met, including in food preparation, and rewards are given for information. (To interviewee) So really youre using food as an incentive to pay or as an incentive to move to a lower security facility?
OFFICER JAMES KLUCK: Thats correct, yes and thats all directed by the intelligence folks, the interpreters and interrogators.
FIDELL: The administrations position has been that it is giving the gist, lets say, of the Geneva Convention protections. Nobodys being tortured. People are being fed properly, people are being housed and so forth, and their religious needs, for example, are being met, all of which you would associate with the Geneva Convention. I would say that theyre being given what I call Geneva lite protection.
COLGAN: The fact remains, humanitarian agencies believe all are entitled to prisoner of war status and the right to a trial or release. Whats more, they believe the U.S. has conveniently blurred the lines between Taliban fighters and Al Qaeda suspects.
ROTH: The Pentagon claims that theres no doubt that no one at Guantanamo is entitled to POW status, but that is blatantly false on its face. If you look for example at the Taliban detainees, the Third Geneva Convention says that the regular members of an armed force are automatically entitled to POW status. The Pentagons absolute refusal to countenance that obvious conclusion is a blatant violation of the Third Geneva Convention.
COLGAN: Visiting the camp is like stepping into a twilight zone. Few questions about the prisoners are answered directly.
COLONEL ADOLPH McQUEEN: I cannot confirm any identities of detainees, both by name or location.
COLGAN: We can talk to young camp guards, but never alone. (To interviewee) Is there a word that youd use to describe the atmosphere inside the detention centre?
MELISSA SHEPHERD: If there is, I wouldnt know what the word would be.
COLGAN: Is it tense?
MELISSA SHEPHERD: It can be tense, it can be stressful, but other than that I wouldnt know.
COLGAN: The military agreed to allow us inside the prison camp, but refused to let us film. We are allowed to record audio; later the military provided its own pictures.
SOLDIER: Were entering Camp 1 here and the only block I have to show you is a block thats being renovated.
COLGAN: Amid the noise of repairs on the cell block, were taken to what looks like a wire mess cage with no solid walls. (To soldier) So how many hours a day would they spend inside what looks like a cage?
SOLDIER: They would spend the majority of their day here. Theyre taken out for showers and recreational periods and if they need to go to the clinic theyre taken out for those but other than that this is where they remain.
COLGAN: They get just two exercise breaks a week of twenty minutes -- alone.
SOLDIER: They can walk, kick the soccer ball, whatever they need to do and theyre brought back in here, but they spend the majority of their day in this cell right here.
COLGAN: Their cells are 2.4 metres long and less than two metres wide. Floodlights remain on 24 hours a day.
MILLER: As were going through this very detailed process of assessment for each detainee that is here and we are determining different levels of responsibility and different levels of action in the global war on terrorism.
COLGAN: Does it concern you that at some point detention becomes punishment, because it has dragged on for so long?
MILLER: This global war on terrorism is ongoing, and as we said, we work as quickly and as prudently as we can to ensure that we can gain this intelligence to win this global war on terrorism and ensure that the enemy combatants that we have detained here are not a threat to our country, to our allies or to our families.
COLGAN: The war on terror has no finite terms; can some of these people be held indefinitely?
MILLER: The war on terror will be ongoing until the day that we win. The duration of that, well have to see; we hope it ends tomorrow.
COLGAN: Were told the detainees are given high quality medical and psychological care. Seventeen prisoners have attempted suicide, some more than once. The military does not inform their families. It was to Foreign Correspondent that the Commander confirmed publicly for the first time that children are being held at Guantanamo Bay.
COLGAN: Are there any juveniles in Guantanamo?
MILLER: There are enemy juvenile combatants here. For our definition, that is any one who is less than sixteen years old.
COLGAN: So there are people under 16 years of age here who are enemy combatants?
MILLER: Thats correct.
COLGAN: The only independent body allowed inside the camp is the International Red Cross which is effectively gagged. To guarantee ongoing access to prisoners around the world, the Red Cross agrees to report what it finds only to the authorities holding the prisoners.
CAVOLI: To see them still after 15 months in the same situation, meaning with nothing moving in a certain way, its extremely worrisome.
COLGAN: The Red Cross believes the war in Afghanistan was over when the Taliban fell.
DANIEL CAVOLI: We have distributed and collected more than four thousand Red Cross messages from Guantanamo.
COLGAN: It says the Taliban soldiers, at least, should now be sent home in accordance with the Geneva Convention.
TERRY HICKS [Looking at letters from son, David]: It does say hes okay in that one doesnt he?
BEVERLEY HICKS : Yes. [Reading letter from son, David] I am in a difficult situation.
COLGAN: Half a world away in Adelaide, a family is waiting. Theyve been waiting for more than a year.
TERRY HICKS: Hes trying to write information, but hes not sure whether its going to be censored.
BEVERLEY HICKS: Are these all the letters weve had from David?
TERRY HICKS: Yes.
BEVERLEY HICKS: And this is the very first letter weve had which come on the 21st of January 2002 where he says Im sorry for any inconvenience or embarrassment I have caused to you. Please forgive me for this.
COLGAN: Beverley and Terry Hicks do not believe their son David is a terrorist.
TERRY HICKS [Reading letter from son, David]: P.S. Please send some photos so I can reflect on such as family snapshots.
COLGAN: The 27-year-old is among the longest serving prisoners at Guantanamo. A convert to Islam, they know he was fighting for the Taliban in the war in Afghanistan when he was captured.
TERRY HICKS: Oh they say theyre trying to find the link between David and Al Qaeda, but up to now theres no link been established.
BEVERLEY HICKS: Thats too tall for David.
TERRY HICKS: Yes its definitely not him. His nose is too big.
BEVERLEY HICKS: No, look at that, thats not him.
COLGAN: Theyve been allowed no contact with their son apart from letters. Now, even those are failing to get through returned unopened since December. The only chance for a glimpse, through grainy pictures filmed by the media.
TERRY HICKS: I believe the justification was there to start with, but as time goes on, I think that justification is now gone. They should be now starting to release them back to their own countries. I mean, its been 15 months, thats a long time. If they still havent got information and the ways and means that they have of extracting information, then hes got nothing to say.
COLGAN: In July, it will be two years since Maha Habib last saw her husband, Egyptian born Sydney man, Mamdouh Habib. Hes the second of two Australians in Guantanamo Bay. He went to Pakistan, she says, to find better religious education for their four children.
MAHA: He wasnt going to stay for three months, but you know, to see if it was good and suitable for the whole family to go for a couple of years or so, and he would have came back. [Reading letter from Mamdouh Habib] Darling, take care of yourself and your children and pray together. I wish to see you all very soon, inshallah.
COLGAN: Its alleged Mamdouh Habib travelled to Afghanistan and back to Pakistan where he was arrested and later handed to the Americans. Hes been interrogated by American and Australian intelligence officials, but has received no consular assistance.
MAHA: Hes not a terrorist, hes not, hes just a family man, a decent family man, a Muslim, okay and he believes in his, you know, he believes in being honest and truthful and hes worried about his kids. I cant see anything wrong with that, thats not a crime.
COLGAN: There have been no details given as to what hes done or why hes still being held.
MAHA: Make us rest, let us rest, you know. We just want to find out, have they got anything against him? Show us and prove it. Is that too much to ask?
COLGAN: Australias Embassy in Washington has close and regular contact with the Pentagon, but has refused to provide Foreign Correspondent with any information on the Hicks or Habib cases.
TERRY HICKS: The government have done absolutely nothing as far as Im concerned to help out an Australian citizen and Davids an Australian citizen.
MAHA: Im not asking them to do a favour for me, Im asking them to do their job, you know, for a person who is entitled. You just give him his rights, hes an Australian citizen, hes entitled to be treated like one.
COLGAN: On the other side of the world, a man they have never seen is defending the two men, clients he has never seen.
MARGUILES: Not only have I not met them I dont know if youre aware of this -- they dont know that litigations even going on, they dont even know that the litigation is going on on their behalf and were not allowed to tell them.
COLGAN: None of those in Guantanamo Bay is American, and a U.S. court has ruled they have no right of access to American courts.
MARGUILES: The governments position is that there is no right of any court in this country or anywhere else in the world to determine the lawfulness of their detention. That is they can be held at the unfettered discretion of the United States military for as long as the military sees fit, and there has never been any proof of any wrongdoing at all.
COLGAN: On the day of this interview, the legal team filed an appeal with the District Court in Washington. Its one of just two legal avenues left open to the Australians.
MARGUILES: If their legal avenues are not available to them, and the United States stands firm in its resistance to diplomatic entreaties, then they could be held that way for the rest of their lives.
COLGAN: Other countries view it differently, among them Swedish parliamentarians are lobbying to bring home their one detainee, calling American delays inexcusable. Spain has asked for its one national to be sent home. The Saudis have more than one hundred people there, and want them all repatriated. Pakistan, which helped round up more than four hundred of those now in Guantanamo, says sixty-one of its own nationals should be released.
ASAD HAYAUDDIN: Most of these people were cannon fodder or foot soldiers. These were not mastermind hardened terrorists. Most of them probably did not even know the ABC of warfare or guerrilla warfare, and they were caught up in a whirlpool of hysteria and Jihad fervour, egged on by their local mullahs in the villages.
MARGUILES: You dont just hold people by casting them into a black hole and say that no one can oversee what they do because we are the U.S. military. Thats not the rule of law thats military rule, thats what it is.
COLGAN: At night, even the noise of a thunder storm doesnt cover the din coming from the cells in Camp Delta. The fact is the United States may well be holding men who have committed terrorist acts and who remain a threat to the U.S. The problem is, we simply dont know. Each night, before their evening movie, the troops on Guantanamo Bay are reassured theyre doing the right thing.
WOMAN SOLDIER Military Spiel: My job is to defend my country and theres nothing I could say or do that would make me prouder than what Im doing right now.
COLGAN: But the rest of the world has no such reassurances. The release of some prisoners and not others, the willingness to cast aside long held conventions, these have caused distrust and concern. How can the world trust a process it cannot see?