VZCZCXYZ0007
OO RUEHWEB
DE RUEHSO #0060 0431519
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 121519Z FEB 08
FM AMCONSUL SAO PAULO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7898
INFO RHEHNSC/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 9050
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO PRIORITY 8576
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC 3025
UNCLAS SAO PAULO 000060
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
STATE INR/R/MR; IIP/R/MR; WHA/PD
DEPT PASS USTR
USDOC 4322/MAC/OLAC/JAFEE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KMDR OPRC OIIP ETRD BR
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: GWOT: GUANTANAMO; SAO PAULO
"Closing Guantanamo"
Political writer Marcos Nobre maintained in liberal, largest
national circulation daily Folha de S. Paulo (2/12): "The wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan have practically disappeared from political
debates in the US, as if the public opinion battle against Bush had
already been won. But things are not that simple. Connected with
Iraq is Guantanamo, the American base in Cuba where prisoners of
what the conservatives call 'war against terror' have been kept.
There has been torture in Guantanamo, and there the prisoners are
not formally accused or have habeas corpus rights. The four main
presidential candidates have already said that they favor the
closing of that prison. Closing Guantanamo is certainly important,
but it does not resolve a basic problem: the flagrant violation of
fundamental rights.... And today Guantanamo is not an isolated case.
France has just approved legislation allowing in principle to keep
a prisoner in jail for life even after his punishment is over."
White