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Muslim Media Network - November 8, 2007
Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm
meets Muslim leaders
By Imam Abdullah El-Amin
In Detroit, Michigan, 16 Imams from varying communities met with Governor Jennifer Granholm and Mr. Greg Roberts, liaison to the Governor in religious affairs, to discuss three concerns of the Muslim community and the economic condition of Michigan.
The Imams belong to the Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan (CIOM) which has been successful in bringing together representatives from most ethnic and cultural groups; and especially Shia and Sunni groups.
Imam Mustafa Elturk, spokesman for the group, began with reading a statement relating to Islamophobia, then addressed the Governor regarding the need for better enforcement of Michigan’s Ethnic Intimidation Statute, the need for a statewide bill banning racial profiling similar to a bill already approved by the City of Detroit’s, and desire to work with the State to increase services for convicts, who are attempting to be productive citizens upon the release from prison.
The Governor showed interests in sitting with the Muslim community to devise a plan to proactively fight Islamophobia. Mr. Roberts stated that he would help coordinate the effort with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights and the Michigan State Police in regards to the better policing and enforcement of Ethnic Intimidation as well as coordinate a meeting with one of the mosques in regards to the Muslim community working with the State regarding Housing & Land Development.
Dawud Walid, of CAIR-Michigan, mentioned to the Governor that the problem wasn’t enforcement of the Ethnic Intimidation Statute but that it was weak, and gave an example of how this charge was dropped in a case were a Muslim was beaten because the prosecutor felt that Ethnic Intimidation Statute was useless. Imams Hassan Qazwini and Ali Elahi gave very personal examples of Ethnic Intimidation recounting experiences they had at airports in this country.
Imam Achmat Salie also presented an idea that the Governor liked regarding having leaders throughout the State (the Upper Peninsula especially) come to masajid to speak with leaders in a way similar to the way that the US State Department brings in people from other countries to come to masajid to learn about the community.
http://muslimmedianetwork.com/mmn/?p=1465
MPAC Bulletin - November 2, 2007
MPAC, APPNA meet with pentagon officials
to discuss mental health of detainees
Washington, DC - Earlier this week, the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) and the Association of Physicians of Pakistani Descent of North America (APPNA) met with top level Pentagon officials to discuss the mental state of detainees held at Guantanamo Bay. Due to four suicide-related deaths within the last year, and a 2006 United Nations Report that has indicated that the treatment of detainees has had profound effects on their mental health, MPAC requested a meeting with the Office of Detainee Affairs, the Office of Health Affairs, and the Office of the General Counsel.
Those who attended the meeting included: Salam Al-Marayati (MPAC Executive Director), Safiya Ghori (MPAC Government Relations Director), Dr. Zahid Imran (psychiatrist and APPNA representative) and Dr. Nayyer Ali (physician and MPAC board member). Also participating in the meeting were mental health providers and the cultural affairs advisor from Guantanamo Bay via video teleconference.
"Mental illness appears to be rather prevalent among detainees with 17% of the current inmates suffering from a psychiatric diagnosis and 5% suffering from depression," Dr. Nayyer Ali told the physicians. Five percent of the detainees are currently taking psychiatric medication and three of the inmates are diagnosed with schizophrenia, according to officials.
The U.N. report posits that the effects of indefinite detention and the conditions of confinement such as "sensory deprivation, exposure to extreme temperatures, and the use of interrogation techniques" have led to "serious mental illness, including 350 acts of self-harm in 2003 alone, as well as individual and mass-suicide attempts and widespread hunger strikes."
According to the Pentagon, there are currently 330 detainees still being held at Guantanamo out of the original 800. Additionally, the Department of Defense has recognized 41 suicide attempts among 29 detainees. However, in January of 2005, the New York Times reported that out of 350 acts of self-harm, there were 120 incidents of inmates trying to hang themselves, while 23 detainees took part in simultaneous mass-suicide attempts.
During the meeting with the treating physicians at Guantanamo Bay, officials stated that a number of inmates have gone on hunger strike. They also stated that when malnutrition becomes severe enough to constitute a threat to their health, detainees are force fed by the insertion and removal of a nasal feeding tube twice a day. In addition, the medical staff made it clear that if an inmate refused medication felt to be necessary for their life, it would be forcibly administered.
The Guantanamo medical team stated that there has been no formal intelligence testing on the detainees, but that approximately 30% of the detainees are illiterate. Similarly, the medical team explained that the medical personnel who assist in interrogations are separate from treating physicians. Dr. Zahid Imran questioned the ethical boundaries on which these "behavioral science consultants" are allowed access to information that is confidential under the doctor-patient relationship.
During the meeting, MPAC Government Relations Director Safiya Ghori questioned the effect of interrogation techniques that amount to torture on the mental health of detainees. Both the Office of Detainee Affairs and the medical professionals at Guantanamo stated that no coercive practices are used during interrogations. To this effect, Dr. Imran reminded the group that "torture only gives us an idea on someone's ability to tolerate pain, and doesn't really help in getting relevant information."
MPAC Executive Director Salam Al-Marayati ended the meeting by emphasizing the importance of "the rehabilitation process of detainees and the need for an effective counter to the ideology of terrorism. That requires more engagement between organizations like MPAC and the U.S. government."
While the medical staff addressed concerns about the medical facilities at Guantanamo Bay, MPAC remains concerned about the deprivation of liberties and the lack of due process afforded to the detainees. MPAC strongly asserts that detention without charges or access to counsel is a departure from established principles of human rights and international law. Furthermore, the Guantanamo Bay detention facilities remain an iconic symbol worldwide of American policy in the war on terror.
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