Habeus Corpus

[Matthew X]

CHARGE THEM OR RELEASE THEM!! Two Australian citizens Mr. Hicks and Mr. 
Habib are United States prisoners at Camp X in Cuba. Hicks was arrested in 
Afghanistan and Habib was arrested in Pakistan. Both men are held as 
?hostile combatants¹ by the United States military, outside the 
jurisdiction of the United States Courts as well as the Geneva Convention 
on prisoners of war. Over 300 prisoners from many countries are held 
indefinitely at Camp X by the United States military. If Hicks and Habib 
have committed crimes, they should be charged with these crimes. If they 
haven¹t they should be released and should be returned to their families in 
Australia. After the Second World War, prisoners of war who were not 
charged with crimes that fell outside the conventions of war, were released 
and sent home. Those that were charged with crimes were dealt with before 
military courts or special courts that were set up to deal with the 
charges. What¹s especially galling about the current situation, is the 
Federal government¹s inability and unwillingness to offer the normal 
diplomatic assistance that is offered to Australians who find themselves in 
difficulty overseas. The Australian government has gone out of its way to 
ignore the plight of Hicks and Habib, both Australian citizens with 
families in Adelaide and Melbourne. The German government made 
representations to the United States government and had its citizens 
released from Camp X. Why can¹t the Australian government do the same? 
Hicks¹ and Habib¹s continued detention is directly linked to the Australian 
government¹s refusal to offer assistance to them because it disagrees with 
their political philosophy. Hicks¹ and Habib¹s continued detention and the 
way their case has been handled by the Australian government has important 
ramifications for all Australians who go overseas, whose political opinions 
don¹t match the opinions of the government of the day. The Australian 
government should protect the interests of all its citizens, not just those 
with similar political viewpoints. The precedent that has been set by the 
Australian government¹s inaction over the fate of Hicks and Habib, has 
important ramifications for all Australians who travel overseas.