US turns notorious prison over to control of Afghan government

By JESSICA DONATI
Published on 11/09/2012 01:52

THE United States has passed control of the controversial giant Bagram jail and its 3,000 suspected Taleban inmates to Afghan authorities, amid concerns the transfer could leave prisoners vulnerable to abuses.

Hundreds of Afghan soldiers watched yesterday as an Afghan flag was hoisted in front of the prison at the huge US-run airfield north of Kabul, as part of a plan to withdraw foreign troops from combat operations in 2014.

“Today is a historical and glorious day for Afghanistan where Afghans are able to take the charge of the prison themselves,” said acting defence minister Enayatullah Nazari.

In a move that has angered the Afghan government, the US plans to keep at least one block at the prison, where any suspected Taleban fighters or terrorists captured in future raids will be held before being handed over. The US reportedly fears that Afghan authorities may simply let some detainees go.

Equally, American irritation with Kabul was apparent at the ceremony, where the US military was represented by 42nd Military Police Brigade commander Colonel Robert Taradash, who runs the facility. No higher ranking American officers attended.

Afghanistan has long sought control of the prison, which has been likened to Guantanamo in Cuba and Abu Graib in Iraq for its association with torture and long detention times.

Earlier this year, the prison gained unwanted attention when hundreds of Korans and other religious materials were taken from its library and sent to a burn pit at the military base. The event triggered scores of deadly anti-American protests across Afghanistan; six US soldiers were killed during the violent demonstrations.

Afghan authorities will maintain the American policy of detention without trial at Bagram, and many fear the practice could be extended to the rest of the country heralding a new chapter of rights abuses by powerful tribes and families.

Afghan lawyers say Afghanistan’s system of powerful tribes and influential families could mean that inmates are exposed to abuse if individuals are imprisoned without trial and on the basis of little, if any, evidence.

“A wealthy figure or a person of authority, if offended for whatever reason, can arrest an innocent citizen over personal or family vendettas,” said the president of Afghanistan’s Independent Bar Association, Rohullah Qarizada.

President Hamid Karzai’s spokesman, Aimal Faizi, declined to comment on the possibility of detention without trial happening anyway, simply saying: “We are against detainees not being processed by Afghan law.”

One former inmate, who spent five years at Bagram 
before being released without being charged, said conditions behind bars worsened when
he was handed over to Afghan custody. “The Afghans are no better than the Americans,” said Karim Shah, adding that they had not let him pray during that time, considered a grave insult in ultra-religious Muslim Afghanistan.

The International Committee of the Red Cross served as a safeguard while the prison was under US control.

Afghanistan’s Independent Human Rights Commission is expected to monitor Bagram under Afghan control, though no official agreement has been reached with the government.