NY appeals court weighs IDs of abused Guantanamo detainees
NEW YORK—An appeals court panel heard arguments Monday on whether to release the identities of some detainees at the Guantanamo Bay prison camp who suffered mistreatment by their handlers or other prisoners.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Wolstein told the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Judge Jed S. Rakoff in Manhattan erred in 2006 when he ordered the names released, finding in favor of a Freedom of Information Act request by The Associated Press.
Wolstein said the privacy interests of detainees who were mistreated were important to protect them from "a genuine possibility of harm" if their identities were revealed and their enemies suspected they cooperated with U.S. authorities.
Attorney David A. Schulz, arguing for the news organization, said Rakoff was right to order the Defense Department to release the identities of victims in eight files reporting investigations of allegations of abuse by military personnel, along with the names of family members who sent personal correspondence to two detainees.
"The AP's interest is the public's interest, knowing what the government is up to," Schulz told the panel. He said learning the identities "allows the AP to investigate these claims."
The judges gave no indication when or how they would rule. "The panel is wrestling with the privacy interests over the public's right to know," Judge Peter Paul said.
In his 2006 opinion, Rakoff wrote that "it is hard to see any substantial privacy interest is involved." He noted that the government had not cited another instance in which a judge had concluded that a victim of prison abuse was granted privacy protection against a FOIA request.
Rakoff said any privacy interests were outweighed by the "considerable public interest in learning more about DoD's treatment of identifiable detainees, whether they have been abused, and whether such abuse has been properly investigated."
The arguments are part of a long-running fight between the media and the U.S. government over the release of information about Guantanamo detainees. About 275 of the 775 individuals captured since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and detained at Guantanamo Bay remain there.
The AP argued that learning the identities of those who were abused was even more urgent in light of reports of abuse, suicides and hunger strikes by detainees who seek to draw attention to their ordeal.
Three lawsuits brought by the AP to force the government to disclose information about the Guantanamo detainees have so far resulted in the release of the identities of all detainees; the transcripts of tribunals held for detainees; transcripts of military review boards; and orders detailing detainee transfers and the height and weight of detainees on hunger strikes.
Rakoff has denied the AP's request for a picture of each detainee and said the DoD can withhold some information. He also ruled that the identity of the spouse of one detainee who was abused did not have to be revealed.
The issue at hand Monday was a more narrow request dealing with abused detainees.
The government argued in court papers to the appeals court that disclosing the names of abused detainees would not "shed significant additional light on the allegations of abuse or DoD's resulting investigation."
It said there were many reasons why a detainee might not want to reveal a role in abuse, including being ashamed, a fear of being viewed as a snitch or a victim. Other reasons include becoming a target of other detainees or being cast in a less flattering light by the results of the government investigation, the government said.
