Taken Question
Office of the Spokesman
Washington, DC
July 31, 2008
Question Taken At the Wednesday, July 30 Daily Press Briefing
Fears of Torture/Reprisal on Detainees Released from Guantanamo Bay (Taken Question)Question: What are the procedures for repatriating prisoners who are being released from Guantanamo Bay? What are we doing to address fears of reprisals and torture? Are we working with other countries to find homes for them? Can we speak on individual cases?
Answer: We are not in a position to speak to specific cases. It is the U.S. Government’s policy not to transfer detainees from Guantanamo to countries where we have determined it is more likely than not they will be tortured.
Diplomatic assurances are one tool the U.S. Government uses to help ensure that transfers are conducted consistent with this humane treatment policy. The U.S. Government will generally seek humane treatment and third-party access assurances in any case where an individual is being transferred with the expectation that he may be subject to post- transfer detention or other security measures. We then evaluate the credibility of these assurances on a case by case basis.
The U.S. has in the past declined to transfer detainees when the totality of the information available to us indicated that we could not proceed consistent with our humane treatment policy, and we continue to follow this policy. In those cases where we cannot find a way to address treatment concerns that bar repatriation, we seek third country resettlement alternatives. We have approached well over 50 countries to seek resettlement options for individuals who fall into this category, but have found very little assistance from the international community. We continue to call on the international community to support our efforts to find appropriate resettlement options.
2008/608
Released on July 31, 2008
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