Poems From GuantánamoGuantánamo Bay
The prison camp at Guantánamo Bay remains open a decade after the first detainee was transferred. Of the men still held 12 were in the original group first taken there.
In the intervening ten years, the US detention facility has made headlines because of allegations of torture, enforced disappearances and illegal detention.
President Obama pledged to close Guantánamo by 22 January 2010 but, with the camp entering its eleventh year, the disregard for human rights continues.
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An incredible 164,058 of you signed our global petition to President Obama, calling on him to end indefinite detention at Guantánamo Bay. We delivered the petition to the White House on 23 January 2012. It's time for Obama to come true on his promise and close Guantánamo Bay. Find out more |
Ten years of Guantánamo
It's over ten years since the first person was transferred to the US detention centre at Guantánamo Bay. An estimated 779 detainees later, 171 men are now held at the camp. 167 of them are being held without trial and many have never been charged with a crime.
- Our report: Guantánamo: A Decade of Damage to Human Rights (PDF)
- Blog: Guantánamo: ten years and counting
Bring Shaker Aamer home
Shaker Aamer was one of the first detainees to be transferred to Guantanamo Bay. In February 2012 he will have spent 10 years at the centre. He has never been charged with or tried for any crime.
Shaker's detention is a violation of international human rights law and must be resolved immediately.
We are asking US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to send Shaker home so that he can be released or charged and given a fair trial. Take action now
Happy holidays?
What happens when a average dude named Rob (Dileep Rao, Avatar and Inception) goes to a travel agency looking for a relaxing vacation? Will he be eligible for the "Not-so Geneva Package" and heading off to Guantánamo Bay?
Former detainee BINYAM MOHAMED's LAWYER SPEAKS OUT
Binyam Mohamed has now returned home from Guantánamo Bay, where he was held for over four years. Amnesty has an exclusive interview with his military lawyer Lt. Col Yvonne Bradley, who represented Binyam while he was held at the camp. Here she gives an open and honest interview about his case and how he was treated. Find out more about Binyam's case
More videos
- Video - Nadja Dizdarevic, wife of Bosnian Guantánamo detainee Boudella al-Hajj tells of her experience (Requires free Real Media Player)
- Video - Martin Mubanga who was detained for 33 months in Guantánamo Bay and released without charge tells of his ordeal (Requires free Real Media Player)
- Video: Testimonies of Guantánamo Bay detainees and their families
- Video: Mother of Guantánamo Bay detainee Abdel Aziz al-Sawaidi
- Video: 'Guantánamo Waiting for Justice' related to Adel Hamad's case
Get creative
Young people in schools across the UK have customised figures in Guantánamo Bay jumpsuits to say whether they think the prison should be closed or remain open. See the results and submit your own figure |
Moazzam Begg
Requires free Real Media Player |
Moazzam Begg was abducted in January 2002 from his home in Islamabad by Pakistani and US
agents. Watch clips of Moazzam Begg talking about Poems from Guantánamo
This extraordinary anthology of poems is written by men imprisoned in Guantánamo
Bay. Since 2002, at least 775 men have been held in the US detention centre. They
wrote their poems with little expectation of ever reaching an audience beyond
a small circle of their fellow prisoners.
The first poems were scratched on to styrofoam cups and passed from cell to cell. Many were destroyed by prison guards.
Further information
- Status of UK residents in Guantánamo (Word)
- Read the timeline 2001 - 2007 (Word)
- Guantánamo in numbers (Word)
