NguSherrill Hogen, Greenfield Recorder, UJanuwari 17, 2023
Amadoda angamashumi amathathu aswelekileyo ukusukela oko bakhululwa bakhululwa kwintolongo yaseGuantanamo. Bafelwe yintoni? Babephi? Ngaba ukho umntu owaziyo? Ngaba silapha e-US ukukhathalela? Ngaba yayingengabo “ababi kakhulu” ababecebe ngo-9/11?
Urhulumente wethu, ngolawulo olune, angasenza ukuba siwalibale la madoda, kwaye silibale amadoda angama-35 angamaSilamsi asele eyedwa phantsi kogcino lwasemkhosini eGuantanamo. Bangasenza silibale izinto ezininzi malunga neGuantanamo enokuthi ngenye indlela ibonakalise umgaqo-nkqubo okhohlakeleyo kunye negazi elibandayo lokuhlazisa abantu ukuze baxhase iMfazwe yoBugrogrisi.
Ndandisandul’ ukuba seWashington, DC njengelungu leNgqina elichasene neNtuthumbo ukuze ndiqhankqalaze isikhumbuzo seminyaka engama-21 yokuvulwa kweGuantanamo, kwaye ndinemibuzo ethile.
Ngaba sifuna iMfazwe ebugrogrisi? Uninzi lwethu lwalucinga njalo, ukuphendula i-9/11, ukukhusela i-United States. Kodwa, ngaba kwafuneka ukuba ibe yimfazwe yasemkhosini? Ngaba kwakunyanzelekile ukuba ijolise kumadoda angamaSilamsi? Ngaba kuye kwafuneka ukuba ivuthe i-Islamophobia efihlakeleyo? Imibuzo emininzi. Zimbalwa iimpendulo eziyinyaniso. Kodwa sinazo izibakala.
Intolongo yaseGuantanamo, ngaphandle kwemida yase-US, kwisiqithi saseCuba, yafumana amabanjwa ayo okuqala ngoJan. bonke bakhululwa emva kweminyaka bevalelwe ukuze kushiyeke abangama-11 kuphela. Ngoko ngokuqinisekileyo abo bangama-2002 banetyala ngento ethile. Kodwa hayi. Amashumi amabini kubo sele evunyiwe ukuba akhululwe, ukusukela ngoFebruwari 779, ukanti asatshixiwe - alindile.
Ukucocwa ukuze kukhululwe kuthetha ukuba ilizwe lesithathu kufuneka liwasuse ezandleni zethu, kuba thina, esithe sabaphatha gadalala ukuya kuthi ga kwiminyaka engama-20, siyala ukubathatha, ngomyalelo wenkongolo. Ngelixa i-US ibongoza kwaye inyoba amanye amazwe ukuba afumane la madoda, amadoda ahlala eziseleni zawo kwaye alinde, ngaloo ndlela esolula intlungu yokungazi ukuba iya kufika nini na inkululeko.
Ukanti, inkululeko ayizange ibonakale ikhululekile. Ngaphandle kwaba bakhankanywe ngasentla abangama-30 abaye bafa ukususela oko bakhululwayo, amakhulu angakumbi abhaqwa, bengenancwadi yokundwendwela, bengenamsebenzi, bengenanyangekelo lwezamayeza okanye i-inshorensi, yaye bengaphinda bamanyane neentsapho zabo! Abanye bakumazwe apho abaluthethi khona ulwimi; abanye bayakhutshelwa njenge-Gitmo yangaphambili, ngokungathi kunjalo ayenayo wenze ulwaphulo-mthetho.
Siwatyala ntoni la madoda? — kuba bangamadoda, bangabantu njengathi, abafanelwe yimbeko nenkathalo. (Sabathuthumbisa abanye babo, ngezona ndlela zicekisekayo, kodwa loo nyaniso nayo ifihliwe kwiSenethi eyimfihlo "iNgxelo yeNtuthuko"). Ukuba ucinga ukuba sibatyala ithokheni yokulungisa, unokunceda ngeGuantanamo Survivors Fund. (www.nogitmos.org)
Isibhengezo esipheleleyo: Ishumi lamadoda angama-35 aseGuantanamo namhlanje abekwe ityala, kodwa ukuvuma kwawo kwafunyanwa phantsi kokungcungcuthekiswa kwaye ngaloo ndlela abuzwa. Amadoda amabini athe axoxwa agwetywa. Okumangalisayo kukuba, lowo ubizwa ngokuba ngungqondongqondo wohlaselo lwe-9/11, uKhalid Sheikh Mohammed, kunye nabacebisi bakhe abane, bonke eGuantanamo bevalelwe emkhosini njengabanye, abazange bazame. Ngaba oku kujongeka njengenkqubo yenkundla esebenzayo? Ngaba le yindlela yokuchitha ubuncwane bethu, ngexabiso le-14 lezigidi zeerandi ngonyaka ngamnye?
Masingayilibali iGuantanamo, kodwa endaweni yoko sisebenze ukuyichitha. Yinxalenye yomgaqo-nkqubo ongalunganga, ubundlobongela, nongenabuntu kurhulumente wethu. Luxanduva lwethu. Masidale iinkqubo eziphilileyo ezibandakanyayo nezisekelwe kubulungisa kumntu wonke. Guantanamo akunjalo.
Sherrill Hogen, ilungu leNgqina elichasene neNtuthumbo, Azisekho iGuantanamos, kunye World BEYOND War, uhlala eCharlemont.
