Demand Gitmo closure, activist tells US group and local NGOs it funds

Demand Gitmo closure, activist tells US group and local NGOs it funds

Former Suaram adviser Kua Kia Soong says failure to do so will expose hypocrisy in wanting to champion human rights only in other countries.

The Guantanamo Bay prison has held roughly 780 detainees since it was opened by the United States government to hold anyone it considered a terrorism suspect. (File pic)
PETALING JAYA:
A former Suaram adviser has called for local NGOs that are funded by an organisation in the United States to push for the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison.

In calling for the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) to act, Kua Kia Soong said the prison has detained close to 800 people over the last two decades.

He added that with the NED promoting human rights and pushing for an end to detention without trial, they should look into their own backyard on the same issue.

“Failure by the NED and Malaysian NGOs to push this cause will expose their hypocrisy in championing human rights only in countries where the US has regime change designs,” Kua, a former MP, said in a statement.

Kua was responding to reports that over 150 organisations sent a letter to US President Joe Biden urging him to “prioritise closing the detention facility” in Cuba.

The detention camp, also known as “Gitmo,” has held roughly 780 detainees since it was opened, most of them without charge or trial, with many said to have gone through unspeakable horrors.

Currently, 35 detainees remain and 20 of them are eligible for transfer.

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