The Guardian 14 June, 2006
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Letters to the Editor
Close Guantánamo
Three prisoners in Guantánamo have committed suicide. Many more have tried as well; there was a hunger strike some time ago and the participants were force-fed in shackles. It is very easy to forget that the people in the US special prison have not been charged with any internationally recognised crimes. Many do not have any access to lawyers. Families certainly do not have any rights to visit. Even international organisations like the Red Cross cannot visit without the presence of US personnel. Four years of such treatment certainly qualifies as torture.
The hunger strikers did not ask for anything extraordinary — just to be either released if they are not going to be charged or have their day in court (preferably with legal representation!).
Those people who had been released did not have any charges brought against them. Nor did they get any compensation for illegal imprisonment. The US authorities not only violated international laws, they continue to do so just to prove that they have been right. Their comments on the three suicides are just sickening.
One person said that the suicides were "asymmetrical warfare" against the US. The other one tried to present it as a "PR campaign". There was a statement trying to present it as "martyrdom". In other words, the dead are to blame and their suicides just goes to show what a rotten bunch they all are.
For four years people have been locked up in the middle of the ocean and ignored. There is a definite shift in the public attitude towards Guantánamo inmates and public demands for the US to close down the prison camp at Guantánamo Bay and either charge and try the detainees in accordance with international standards, or release them. Enough is enough.
Robert Gordon
South Melbourne, Vic
Profits vs families
Last time I had any dealings with childcare was about ten years ago. It was a community based one and absolutely brilliant. Children were extremely well looked after in a spotless and secure environment, the staff was dedicated, well-trained and cheerful. Children came from different backgrounds and the mix did all of them a lot of good. Every day they’d come home with something new to tell and something to show — a play dough little thing or a painting. There was a regular newsletter produced at the centre and kids’ achievements were highlighted.
After the tearful couple of days of adjustment everything was OK. The staff was always very helpful with any sort of advice and knew every child and whatever problems a child had they were there to fix it. They had outings, excursions, theatre plays — the works. I really feel sorry for the parents who can’t be sure that they’d get the same kind of service now.
When I read about ABC Learning centres (Sydney Morning Herald June 12, 2006 ) spending "less than $1.43 a child per day" on food it makes me wonder. The same article says that their profits in 2004-05 exceeded $50 million. Evidently it runs more than 800 long-day-care centres, about 20 per cent of all the centres. The Federal Government will give it $206 million in 2005-06 through child-care benefit payments to parents.
The article says that the government favours such corporate institutions — there is no surprise there. I personally cannot accept the situation when profits are made at the children’s expense. I cannot see how you can properly feed a child for a dollar a day.
The staff at those centres has to deal with lots of paperwork (according to Sydney Morning Herald) and clean toilets because of lack of cleaners. That’s not quality childcare as we remember it. So much for the government’s claims that families come first. It seems to me that profits come first, as usual.
Sally Jones
Paddington, NSW
Nuclear power
Nuclear power’s a loss without huge tax payer grants, so why’s John Howard so keen?
Maybe his friends are licking their lips at all that money from you and me.
Who cares about more kids with cancer when you can make a buck?
Want more info on that? Put "Jean-Francois Viel"+"La Hague" into your computer search engine.
And here’s a quote from medical researcher Prof Jean-Francois Viel: "I know better than most how powerful the nuclear lobby is. I have experienced attacks and intimidations at the expense of my professional and family life."
And as for cutting green house gases, nuclear’s a pricey dud compared to wind, solar and biomass.
But what’s the key difference? Why of course, its profits (or rather our money), for the fat cats.
Mrs Kim Bax
Cedar Vale, Qld