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Uighur detainees decision delayed to next Supreme Court term

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court closed its 2008 term Monday without deciding whether to hear the case of the remaining 13 Chinese Uighur Muslims at Guantanamo Bay. The Court did not provide a reason for delaying its decision. Court watchers believe the Court's decision may have been based on their desire to avoid interference with a potential diplomatic solution. If the remaining Uighurs are transferred overseas before the Court decides to hear their case, it will likely be dismissed as moot. If not, the Court may reach a decision on whether to take the case in October when the 2009 term begins. Earlier this month, four of the Uighurs being held at Guantanamo Bay were transferred to Bermuda. Palau President Johnson Toribiong has said that his government had reached an agreement with the US to accept all 17 Uighur detainees, but US officials said later that no final agreement had been reached. The Uighurs' release was ordered by a US district court in October, but that decision was overturned in February by the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. The Chinese government has repeatedly demanded the repatriation of the Uighurs, maintaining that they are members of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), a militant group that calls for separation from China and has been a US-designated terrorist group since 2002. The US has previously rejected China's calls to repatriate the Uighurs, citing fear of torture upon their return.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on June 30, 2009 (boomark / email).