A week ago the US Supreme Court declared that the military commission process was illegal because it was not authorised by Congress and it offended the Geneva Conventions, which are judicially enforceable instruments.
But if Geneva Conventions and congressional approval are required for Guantanamo trials, what about the whole slew of "legal" devices that the Bush White House has manufactured for the war on terrorism? This includes warrantless eavesdropping, indefinite detention, interrogation techniques, torture, rendition and CIA black sites.
Back here the news was greeted by Howard with a bit of shuffling of the feet and something about receiving the wrong legal advice. "Hicks should be brought to trial as soon as possible," he said.
How many years has that refrain been tapped out by this bloodless little coot? And yet the trial is as far away as ever because Congress is unlikely to grope its way to an agreed process any time quickly.
The true position of the US and Australian governments is that they are not so much interested in trials for the detainees as convictions. Even if the Guantanamo prisoners are innocent, the political imperative is that they should not be released because to do so would be an admission that the war on terrorism has been misconceived, or that it is not as terrifying as it's supposed to be.
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