Prisoners at Guantanamo Bay

Editor—How patronising of Marshall to imagine that he knows what is happening in Guantanamo Bay.¹ His letter is merely an excuse for espousing his view that American officials are torturing their prisoners.

The American authorities have allowed the International Committee of the Red Cross and other bodies, as well as the British government, to have access to the prisoners. Indeed, it is my understanding (through the media here in the United States) that the Red Cross has already made recommendations to the American government, which are being acted on while its full report is awaited. I do not think that the government is trying to hide the prisoners' treatment in any way.

Forrest attempts to manipulate the situation by suggesting that the now infamous photograph of the prisoners after their arrival from Afghanistan shows how they are managed on a daily basis.² How blind. Politics dictate. I also believe that the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay should be treated humanely and afforded the protection of the Geneva Convention. Like many others, however, I do not have any sympathy for them. I suggest that the reports and comments from those bodies that have had access to Guantanamo Bay may be more accurate and tenable than the concerns of Marshall.

We are doctors and are bound by international convention as well as our own moral and ethical boundaries. In our treatment of any patient we must follow our conscience.