wfn.org | NCC Urges U.S. to Protect Uighur Chinese at Guantanamo

["Carol Fouke" <cfouke@ncccusa.org>]

NCC's Edgar Urges U.S. to Accept Responsibility for Uighur Chinese Refugees
at Guantanamo

November 1, 2004, New York City - The United States government should accept
responsibility for the Uighur Chinese Muslims it is holding at the Guantanamo
Bay naval base - people rounded up in Afghanistan two years ago, subsequently
declared by the United States to be innocent of any crime and likely to be
tortured or executed if they are repatriated to China.

So declares National Council of Churches General Secretary Robert W. Edgar in
his October 29 appeal to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.	While the
U.S. government has pledged not to repatriate the up to two dozen Uighur
Chinese to China, where they are a persecuted minority, some observers worry
that frustration at not being able to find a U.S. ally to take them in might
lead the U.S. to revoke that pledge.

"This dilemma is a direct outcome of the failed U.S. policy on Guantanamo,"
the Rev. Dr. Edgar noted in his letter to Secretary of State Powell.  The
appeal is the latest in a series of NCC actions to protect the due process
and other human rights of Guantanamo prisoners.  

"Earlier this year in a case for which the National Council of Churches USA
submitted an amicus brief, the U.S. Supreme Court decided in favor of the
Guantanamo detainees with regard to their right to due process," Dr. Edgar
said.  "The release of several detainees without charge further undercut the
government's argument that such detentions were necessary.  Now, we have a
situation where detainees could be killed as a direct result of U.S. policy."

The full text of Dr. Edgar's letter to Secretary of State Powell follows.

*  *  *  *

October 29, 2004

Secretary of State Colin Powell
U.S. State Department
2201 C Street, NW  
Washington, DC	20520

Dear Secretary Powell:

I am writing to you about the grim situation faced by the Uighur Chinese
prisoners who are being held by the United States at Guantanamo.  As you
know, they have been determined innocent of any crime and are of no threat to
the U.S.  But they are unable to be returned to China after their release for
fear of execution, since they are a persecuted minority there. The refusal of
many of our allies to accept them only compounds the problem.  

This dilemma is a direct outcome of the failed U.S. policy on Guantanamo. 
Earlier this year in a case for which the National Council of Churches USA
submitted an amicus brief, the U.S. Supreme Court decided in favor of the
Guantanamo detainees with regard to their right to due process.  The release
of several detainees without charge further undercut the government's
argument that such detentions were necessary.  Now, we have a situation where
detainees could be killed as a direct result of U.S. policy.

It would appear that the only option left to the United States, despite
possible harm to U.S.-China relations, may be to allow the Uighurs to remain
in our country.  If the U.S. should decide to accept this responsibility, the
National Council of Churches USA is pleased to inform you that its partner
organization, Church World Service, on behalf of and through our member faith
communions, is committed to offer resettlement services to these refugees.  
As you may already know, Church World Service has a long and solid track
record with regard to refugee assistance.

This unfortunate situation, born of a deeply troubling national policy,
deserves to be rectified in an honorable manner.  I pray that together we can
begin this process in the days ahead.

Peace,

Rev. Robert Edgar, General Secretary

-end-

Media Contact: Carol Fouke, cfouke@ncccusa.org; 212-870-2252
National Council of Churches USA
475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115
www.ncccusa.org