Gul Chaman

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Gul Chaman is a citizen of Afghanistan, held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, in Cuba.^[1] His detainee ID number is 1021. American intelligence analysts estimate Gul Chaman was born in 1973, in Osman, Hazro, Logar, Afghanistan]].

1 Combatant Status Review Tribunal
2 Administrative Review Board hearing
3 References

[edit] Combatant Status Review Tribunal

Combatant Status Review Tribunals were held in a small trailer, the same width, but shorter, than a mobile home. The Tribunal's President sat in the big chair. The detainee sat with their hands and feet shackled to a bolt in the floor in the white, plastic garden chair. A one way mirror behind the Tribunal President allowed observers to observe clandestinely. In theory the open sessions of the Tribunals were open to the press. Three chairs were reserved for them. In practice the Tribunal only intermittently told the press that Tribunals were being held. And when they did they kept the detainee's identities secret. In practice almost all Tribunals went unobserved.

Initially the Bush administration asserted that they could withhold all the protections of the Geneva Conventions to captives from the war on terror. This policy was challenged before the Judicial branch. Critics argued that the USA could not evade its obligation to conduct a competent tribunals to determine whether captives are, or are not, entitled to the protections of prisoner of war status.

Subsequently the Department of Defense instituted the Combatant Status Review Tribunals. The Tribunals, however, were not authorized to determine whether the captives were lawful combatants -- rather they were merely empowered to make a recommendation as to whether the captive had previously been correctly determined to match the Bush administration's definition of an enemy combatant.

Chaman chose to participate in his Combatant Status Review Tribunal.^[2]

[edit] Witness requests

Chaman asked for seven witnesses. Three of them were fellow detainees: Haji Naim Kuchai, Haji Nazrat Khan, Akhtar Mohammed, and four off-Island witnesses, two of whom were Commander Sakhi, Hazrat Mujadidi. Attempts to reach the off-Island witnesses failed.

Main article: Witnesses requested by Guantanamo detainees

[edit] Allegations

a. The deiainee is associated with al Qaida, ihe Taliban and their associated forces:

When captured, the detainee possessed current intimate knowledge of the logistical, financial and operational structure of at Qaida, the Taliban and their associated forces.
The detainee attended a meeting of then current al Qaida, Taliban, and Hezb-i Islami Gulbuddin (HIG) operatives held in Peshewar, Pakistan.
When captured, ihe detainee possessed current intimate knowledge of the HIG command inner circle. This knowledge includes its structure, membership, and hierarchy of influence.
When captured, the detainee possessed knowledge of current HIG plans to attack U.S. Forces stationed in Afghanistan.

b. The detainee engaged in hostilities against ihe United States or it s coalition partners.

The detainee collected intelligence to facilitate a planned attack on coalition interests in late 2002 and early 2003.

[edit] Testimony

[edit] Administrative Review Board hearing

Detainees who were determined to have been properly classified as "enemy combatants" were scheduled to have their dossier reviewed at annual Administrative Review Board hearings. The Administrative Review Boards weren't authorized to review whether a detainee qualified for POW status, and they weren't authorized to review whether a detainee should have been classified as an "enemy combatant".

They were authorized to consider whether a detainee should continue to be detained by the United States, because they continued to pose a threat -- or whether they could safely be repatriated to the custody of their home country, or whether they could be set free.

Chaman chose to participate in his Administrative Review Board hearing.^[3]