The ICRC's work at Guantanamo Bay
Press Release - 30th November 2004
Geneva (ICRC) - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been regularly visiting the US detention
facility at Guantanamo Bay since early 2002 for the purpose of monitoring that persons held there are treated in
accordance with applicable international laws and standards.
It also enables those detained at Guantanamo Bay to remain in contact with their families by means of Red Cross
messages.
The contents of the ICRC's representations and reports are confidential and for the exclusive attention of the relevant
detaining authorities. Therefore, in accordance with its usual policy, the organization will not publicly confirm or
deny whether the quotations in the article entitled "Red Cross Finds Detainee Abuse in Guantanamo", which appeared in
the New York Times of 30 November, reflect findings reported by the ICRC to the United States authorities regarding the
conditions of detention and treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay.
The ICRC uses its exchanges with governments to make clear its concerns and recommendations regarding the situation in
places of detention and to demand changes when necessary. Guantanamo Bay is no exception. The ICRC remains convinced
that its policy of direct and confidential representations to the detaining authorities best serves the objective of
ensuring that the detainees’ treatment meets the standards set by international humanitarian law. This policy has made
it possible for the ICRC to have repeated and regular access to those held at Guantanamo Bay and to speak with them in
private.
The recent creation of the Office of Detainee Affairs in the US Department of Defense has provided a forum in which
issues relating to Guantanamo Bay can be discussed in a more timely and systematic manner. Nevertheless, the ICRC
remains concerned that significant problems regarding conditions and treatment at Guantanamo Bay have not yet been
adequately addressed. The organization will pursue its discussions on these issues with the US authorities.
In 2003, the ICRC visited over 2,000 places of detention holding nearly 450,000 persons deprived of their freedom in
about 80 countries. For thousands of those detainees, including many at Guantanamo Bay, visits by ICRC delegates
constitute their only contact with the outside world.
ENDS