April, 29 2009, 08:02am EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Matt Daloisio, 201-264-4424, daloisio@earthlink.net
Frida Berrigan, 347-683-4928, frida.berrigan@gmail.com
Anti Torture Activists Demand Prosecution of U.S. Torture and Release of Innocent Detainees
Direct Action: Thursday, 4/30
WASHINGTON
On
April 30th, hundreds of human rights activists will gather near the
White House to call on the Obama administration to support a criminal
inquiry into torture under the Bush administration and to fully break
with past detention policies.
At
a rally at Lafayette Park at 11:15 am, members of Witness Against
Torture, Amnesty International, the American Civil Liberties Union, and
the Torture Abolition Survivors Support Coalition will speak out about
the need for accountability and an end to Bush-era policies. At
noon, sixty activists from Witness Against Torture -- each representing
one of the Guantanamo inmates cleared for release but still imprisoned
- will risk arrest.
"Despite
early, encouraging signs," says Matthew Daloisio of Witness Against
Torture, "the Obama administration has been a disappointment with
respect to detainee issues and torture. President Obama has been
reluctant to investigate possible, past crimes, and many of the immoral
and illegal policies of the Bush administration -- from the denial of
habeas rights at Bagram Air Base, to the continued detention of
innocent men in Guantanamo -- remain in place. We need accountability,
not immunity, and an end to the abuse of detainees. This
president and many members of Congress are in office partly because of
their promise to repudiate Bush's detention regime. It's time they live
up to that promise."
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS, THURSDAY, APRIL 30
10:15am: Rally at the Capitol Reflecting Pool, followed by detainee procession to Lafayette Park
11:15 am: Rally at Lafayette Park and detainee procession to the White House
Noon: White House Protest
Witness
Against Torture formed in 2005 when 25 activists went to Guantanamo
Bay, Cuba, to protest outside the detention camp. The April 30
demonstration concludes Witness Against Torture's 100 Days Campaign to
Close Guantanamo and End Torture. During the campaign,
WAT activists have held a daily vigil at the White House, brought
protest signs to confirmation and other congressional hearings, lobbied
lawmakers to change detention policies, and hosted numerous public
events in the Washington area.
Background on the campaign and WAT demands, https://www.100dayscampaign.org/node/475
Details for April 30th, https://www.100dayscampaign.org/a30
Witness Against Torture is a grassroots movement that came into being in December 2005 when 24 activists walked to Guantanamo to visit the prisoners and condemn torture policies. Since then, it has engaged in public education, community outreach, and non-violent direct action. For the first 100 days of the Obama administration, the group held a daily vigil at the White House, encouraging the new President to uphold his commitments to shut down Guantanamo.
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