- #1
Count Iblis
- 1,863
- 8
US "spies" arrested abroad vs. "spies" arrested in the US
We had the Roxana Saberi in Iran. She was freed because even the Iranians recognized that she did not have a fair trial. She was allowed to go home. Now, in the US we have the case of the Cuban five:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_Five
The latest news is that an appeal on a very procedural ground has been denied:
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE55E3VD20090615
So, it looks to me that the US is treating these people like Iran or North Korea was/is treating the US "spies", except that in the latter case, you at least have a reasonable chance of getting released. In the US case, the fact that the original trial happened "according to the rules", an appeal (in the sense of a re-examination of the facts of the case) is impossible.
We had the Roxana Saberi in Iran. She was freed because even the Iranians recognized that she did not have a fair trial. She was allowed to go home. Now, in the US we have the case of the Cuban five:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_Five
On 27 May 2005, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights adopted a report by its Working Group on Arbitrary Detention stating its opinions on the facts and circumstances of the case and calling upon the US government to remedy the situation.[17] Among the report's criticisms of the trial and sentences, section 29 states:
"29. The Working Group notes that it arises from the facts and circumstances in which the trial took place and from the nature of the charges and the harsh sentences handed down to the accused that the trial did not take place in the climate of objectivity and impartiality that is required in order to conform to the standards of a fair trial as defined in article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which the United States of America is a party."
Amnesty International has criticized the US treatment of the Cuban Five as human rights violations, as the wives of René Gonzáles and Gerardo Hernández have not been allowed visas to visit their imprisoned husbands.
The latest news is that an appeal on a very procedural ground has been denied:
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE55E3VD20090615
So, it looks to me that the US is treating these people like Iran or North Korea was/is treating the US "spies", except that in the latter case, you at least have a reasonable chance of getting released. In the US case, the fact that the original trial happened "according to the rules", an appeal (in the sense of a re-examination of the facts of the case) is impossible.