17 Gitmo detainees freed

Yesterday saw a stunning setback for the Bush regime when a federal judge ordered 17 detainees at the Guantanamo Bay death camp released. This was the first ruling like this in the 7 years of wrangling over Gitmo.

The men had been held there without a trial or due process since 2002.

The Bush regime had given up trying to prove the men were enemy combatants, so why the hell did they insist on keeping them detained? If the men posed a threat, why didn't the government prove it?

The case stemmed from the writ of habeas corpus - a right the Supreme Court upheld in a major decision this year. Although the Constitution says habeas corpus may be suspended "when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it", it can't be revoked permanently.

Habeas corpus. It's a precious concept that lets one seek relief from arbitrary detention. Knowing about habeas corpus can be invaluable. If only more people knew more about it, things could have been very different in the past few years.

(Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/08/washington/08detain.html)