Jamal Abdullah Kiyemba
Encyclopedia
Jamal Abdullah Kiyemba, also known as Anthony Kiyemba, is a Uganda
n citizen who was held in extrajudicial detention
in the United States
Guantanamo Bay detainment camp
s, in Cuba
, on suspicion of being a terrorist
.
His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 701.
The Department of Defense
reports he was born on April 22, 1979, in Bunamwaya, Uganda.
from Uganda to join his mother in 1993 when he was 14 years old, and completed his education in London
. He has been granted indefinite leave to remain in the country, but is not a British citizen. Because of this, the British Government has declined to make representations on his behalf.
Kiyemba's lawyer
, Clive Stafford Smith
, says that Kiyemba was a participant in a hunger strike which started in July 2005 in protest at the conditions in the camp and alleged maltreatment, including alleged desecration of the Qur'an
by American guards. The hunger strike ended on July 28, 2005 after promises were made to address the detainees' concerns. Many detainees resumed the hunger strike on August 8, 2005, believing the camp authorities had not lived up to their promises.
Sam Kutesa, the Ugandan Minister of Foreign Affairs, was quoted on December 12, 2005 about his government's responsibility to intervene on Kiyemba's behalf.
He said: "I understand that Britain gave up on him. I am yet to look at the papers. We have to intervene, but this depends on the documents."
Initially the Bush administration asserted that they could withhold all the protections of the Geneva Conventions
to captives from the War on Terror. This policy was challenged before the Judicial branch. Critics argued that the USA could not evade its obligation to conduct competent tribunal
s to determine whether captives are, or are not, entitled to the protections of prisoner of war
status.
Subsequently the Department of Defense
instituted the Combatant Status Review Tribunal
s. The Tribunals, however, were not authorized to determine whether the captives were lawful combatants -- rather they were merely empowered to make a recommendation as to whether the captive had previously been correctly determined to match the Bush administration's definition of an enemy combatant
.
Kiyemba chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.
Detainees who were determined to have been properly classified as "enemy combatants" were scheduled to have their dossier reviewed at annual Administrative Review Board
hearings. The Administrative Review Boards were not authorized to review whether a detainee qualified for POW Xstatus, and they were not authorized to review whether a detainee should have been classified as an "enemy combatant".
They were authorized to consider whether a detainee should continue to be detained by the United States, because they continued to pose a threat – or whether they could safely be repatriated to the custody of their home country, or whether they could be set free.
The factors for and against continuing to detain Kiyemba were among the 121 that the Department of Defense released on March 3, 2006.
The following primary factors favor continued detention
The following primary factors favor release or transfer
in the winter of 2006, according to Ugandan paper The New Vision.
Kiyemba was denied entry to the United Kingdom, and deported to Uganda. He was detained in Ugandan custody for two months, and released on April 18, 2006.
According to the BBC
, 02/06/06, he was considering whether to fight the government decision not to let him back into Britain. Kiyemba further stated: "I have lived in a 21st Century nightmare. I have been held hostage by the most developed, advanced, richest superpower".
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
n citizen who was held in extrajudicial detention
Extrajudicial detention
Arbitrary or extrajudicial detention is the detention of individuals by a state, without ever laying formal charges against them.Although it has a long history of legitimate use in wartime , detention without charge, sometimes in secret, has been one of the hallmarks of totalitarian states...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Guantanamo Bay detainment camp
Guantanamo Bay detainment camp
The Guantanamo Bay detention camp is a detainment and interrogation facility of the United States located within Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. The facility was established in 2002 by the Bush Administration to hold detainees from the war in Afghanistan and later Iraq...
s, in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, on suspicion of being a terrorist
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
.
His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 701.
The Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
reports he was born on April 22, 1979, in Bunamwaya, Uganda.
Background
After his father died, he came to the UKUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
from Uganda to join his mother in 1993 when he was 14 years old, and completed his education in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. He has been granted indefinite leave to remain in the country, but is not a British citizen. Because of this, the British Government has declined to make representations on his behalf.
Kiyemba's lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, Clive Stafford Smith
Clive Stafford Smith
Clive Adrian Stafford Smith OBE is a British [see talk] lawyer who specialises in the areas of civil rights and the death penalty in the United States of America....
, says that Kiyemba was a participant in a hunger strike which started in July 2005 in protest at the conditions in the camp and alleged maltreatment, including alleged desecration of the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
by American guards. The hunger strike ended on July 28, 2005 after promises were made to address the detainees' concerns. Many detainees resumed the hunger strike on August 8, 2005, believing the camp authorities had not lived up to their promises.
Sam Kutesa, the Ugandan Minister of Foreign Affairs, was quoted on December 12, 2005 about his government's responsibility to intervene on Kiyemba's behalf.
He said: "I understand that Britain gave up on him. I am yet to look at the papers. We have to intervene, but this depends on the documents."
Combatant Status Review Tribunal
Geneva Conventions
The Geneva Conventions comprise four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish the standards of international law for the humanitarian treatment of the victims of war...
to captives from the War on Terror. This policy was challenged before the Judicial branch. Critics argued that the USA could not evade its obligation to conduct competent tribunal
Competent tribunal
Competent Tribunal is a term used Article 5 paragraph 2 of the Third Geneva Convention, which states:-ICRC commentary on competent tribunals:...
s to determine whether captives are, or are not, entitled to the protections of prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
status.
Subsequently the Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
instituted the Combatant Status Review Tribunal
Combatant Status Review Tribunal
The Combatant Status Review Tribunals were a set of tribunals for confirming whether detainees held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp had been correctly designated as "enemy combatants". The CSRTs were established July 7, 2004 by order of U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense...
s. The Tribunals, however, were not authorized to determine whether the captives were lawful combatants -- rather they were merely empowered to make a recommendation as to whether the captive had previously been correctly determined to match the Bush administration's definition of an enemy combatant
Enemy combatant
Enemy combatant is a term historically referring to members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. Prior to 2008, the definition was: "Any person in an armed conflict who could be properly detained under the laws and customs of war." In the case of a civil war or an...
.
Kiyemba chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.
Administrative Review Board hearing
Administrative Review Board
The Administrative Review Board is a United States military body that conducts an annual review of the suspects held by the United States in Camp Delta in the United States Navy base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba....
hearings. The Administrative Review Boards were not authorized to review whether a detainee qualified for POW Xstatus, and they were not authorized to review whether a detainee should have been classified as an "enemy combatant".
They were authorized to consider whether a detainee should continue to be detained by the United States, because they continued to pose a threat – or whether they could safely be repatriated to the custody of their home country, or whether they could be set free.
The factors for and against continuing to detain Kiyemba were among the 121 that the Department of Defense released on March 3, 2006.
The following primary factors favor continued detention
The following primary factors favor release or transfer
Release
Kiyemba was transferred to the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in the winter of 2006, according to Ugandan paper The New Vision.
Kiyemba was denied entry to the United Kingdom, and deported to Uganda. He was detained in Ugandan custody for two months, and released on April 18, 2006.
According to the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, 02/06/06, he was considering whether to fight the government decision not to let him back into Britain. Kiyemba further stated: "I have lived in a 21st Century nightmare. I have been held hostage by the most developed, advanced, richest superpower".
External links
- Third British resident held in Guantanamo Bay, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, August 1, 2003 - UK's 'forgotten' Cuba detainees, BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, 25 January 2005 - Hunger strikers pledge to die in Guantánamo, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, September 9, 2005 - Terror camp man’s protest, This is Local London, September 16, 2005