August 2007
City of Portland urges action in Congress
After months of making the rounds at City Hall we ultimately succeeded at getting the City of Portland to officially advocate for the restoration of habeas corpus. At the bottom of this blog entry is a copy of the letter being sent to the Oregon delegation urging the endorsement of the Habeas Corpus Restoration Act and the Restoring the Constitution Act. As unsexy as it is, habeas restoration is at the heart of the issues that allow Adel Hamad to sit indefinitely in prison without recourse. If Guantanamo is closed tomorrow and all the prisoners who have no credible evidence against them are released, there will deservedly be a lot of celebration. But keep in mind that the circumstances that allowed Guantanamo to happen would still be in place. It would still be legal to hold someone indefinitely without trial, without the right to see the evidence against them, without the right to even be at one’s own tribunal. Here in Portland for instance, Brandon Mayfield, falsely accused of, and held in lockdown for, the Madrid bombings was considered a 100% fingerprint match by the FBI, a sure thing. Had habeas corpus been suspended at that point in time who knows if he would have adequately been able to defend himself from indefinite false imprisonment.
If you are interested in engaging your own city council around these issues let us know. We have copies of the resolution we originally tried to get sponsorship for. It could be used as a template for other efforts. And the letter that the City of Portland drafted is below. Props go out particularly to Jane Ames of City Commissioner Sam Adams’ office. Without her, this wouldn’t have happened.
David
Project Hamad
August 2,, 2007
The Honorable Gordon Smith
404 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Smith,
As elected representatives of the City of Portland, we urge our Oregon delegation to endorse two bills, the Restoring the Constitution Act and the Habeas Corpus Restoration Act, that have been introduced in Congress this year.
We are concerned about the suspension of habeas corpus and the resulting implications for the civil rights of Portland residents. We recognize the seriousness of fighting the War on Terror, yet believe that habeas corpus is a fundamental safeguard which is essential to defining the United States as a free and just society. As a result of The Military Commissions Act of 2006 our government can now detain people indefinitely without trial, without the right to see the evidence against them, and without the right to be present at one’s own tribunal.
Residents of Portland, of Oregon, and of the United States deserve the fundamental protections insured by our Constitution, Bill of Rights, and tertiary branched government, which are designed to provide separation of power. The fundamental right of habeas corpus is protected in our constitution except “when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it [to be suspended].” We must work to preserve safety and civil rights under our current circumstances.
We urge our delegation to strongly support these important bills, and work to reinstate the writ of habeas corpus to its proper place in American democracy.
Thank you for your unending public service and consideration of this issue.
Sincerely,
Tom Potter Sam Adams
Mayor Commissioner
Randy Leonard Erik Sten
Commissioner Commissioner
