The Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales issues a Press Release on the Appeals Decision of the Court of Military Commissions Review in United States of America v Al Nashiri.
Following a trial observation in the case of United States of America v Al-Nashiri, the Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales (“BHRC”) submitted an amicus brief to the Court of Military Commissions Review (“CMRC”), which hears appeals from the Guantanamo Camp Justice cases. The brief, drafted by Stephen Cragg KC (then BHRC Chair) and Jodie Blackstock (BHRC Treasurer) submitted that international law requires the exclusion of evidence obtained as a result of torture and highlighted the caselaw and UN instruments on the rights of detainees in the context of interrogation following torture.
Jodie Blackstock said, “While BHRC has grave concerns that after nearly 25 years, the pending trials at Guantanamo Bay can ever be fair, the Military Commissions have underscored the abhorrence to evidence both obtained, and tainted by, torture, and that this should always be excluded as a means of providing reliable evidence to support a conviction.”
A copy of the full press release can be found here: BHRC Press Release on CMCR Decision in Al Nashiri.
