WEDNESDAY, MARCH 17, 6pm – FILM SCREENING/DISCUSSION
Outside the Law: Stories from Guantánamo
“Outside the Law: Stories from Guantánamo” is a new documentary film, directed by Polly Nash and Andy Worthington, telling the story of Guantánamo (and including sections on extraordinary rendition and secret prisons) with a particular focus on how the Bush administration turned its back on domestic and international laws, how prisoners were rounded up in Afghanistan and Pakistan without adequate screening (and often for bounty payments), and why some of these men may have been in Afghanistan or Pakistan for reasons unconnected with militancy or terrorism (as missionaries or humanitarian aid workers, for example). The documentary focuses on three particular prisoners — Shaker Aamer (who is still held), Binyam Mohamed (who was released in February 2009) and Omar Deghayes.
Binyam Mohamed has been in the news recently because his experience at Guantanamo contradicts the Justice Department’s report that lawyers, John Yoo and Jay Bybee, are innocent of misconduct on issuing torture. David Swanson commented on Binyam Mohamed’s horrific experience as he was dissecting John Yoo’s new book.