IRISH CROWD MOVED BY "THE ROAD TO GUANTANAMO"

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DUBLIN 000362 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PTER OPRC KPAO PINR PHUM MARR MOPS PINS EI SUBJECT: IRISH CROWD MOVED BY "THE ROAD TO GUANTANAMO" Summary -------------- ¶1. Summary. On April 5, an emboff attended the Amnesty International sponsored public screening of "The Road to Guantanamo" and a following Q&A session with former Guantanamo detainees, Rhuhel Ahmed, and Shafiq Rasul. The film is a docu-drama that presents a damning account of USG treatment of allegedly innocent civilians caught up in the initial stages of the war in Afghanistan and sent to Guantanamo Bay. In the Q&A session, Ahmed and Rasul claimed that they were victims of systematic torture, deprivations, and hardships at the hands of the U.S. military. The also said they will take legal actions against the USG and hope to participate in such film screenings in the US to muster support for the call to close Guantanamo detention center. End Summary. The Film-"The Road to Guantanamo" -------------- -------------- ¶2. On April 5, emboff attended an Amnesty International Irish Section presentation of a special screening of "The Road to Guantanamo" at the Irish Film Institute. The film, viewed by an audience of approximately 400 people, is a docu-drama that recounts the tale of how three young British citizens of Pakistani ethnicity ended up as detainees for over two years at Guantanamo Bay. The film blends news footage, re-enactments, and interviews with the young men from the UK Midlands: Rhuhel Ahmed, Shafiq Rasul and Asif Iqbal. In the story line, four men (one named Monir was lost during the ordeal and presumed dead),traveled to Pakistan for the wedding of Iqbal. According to the men in the film interviews, during October 2001, they decided to cross the Afghanistan border to offer humanitarian assistance to Afghans. According to the film, not being familiar with the area or language, they mistakenly wound up in a Taliban enclave near Kunduz just as attacks from the Northern Alliance commenced. The Northern Alliance soldiers reportedly rounded them up along with groups of suspected Taliban, and transported them to detention centers in Northern Afghanistan. The young men, who later became known as the "Tipton Three" (Tipton is their hometown near Birmingham, England),in their words, were later "sold" to U.S. special forces who shaved them, beat them, subjected them to various forms of torture and then shipped them to Guantanamo Bay, where they were incarcerated and tortured for over two years. Follow-up Q&A session with the detainees -------------- -------------- ¶3. After the screening, Amnesty International conducted a follow-on Q&A, hosted by a local radio personality and paneled by the film's director, Mat Whitecross and two of the detainees, Rhuhel Ahmed and Shafiq Rasul. As witnessed by an emboff, the audience was clearly moved by the film, with one member led to shout, "Bomb the CIA!" during the session. Though the film was relatively low-budget in production quality, its politics resonated well with the sympathetic Irish crowd. Ahmed and Rasul spoke out publicly about systematic torture, deprivations, and hardships they allegedly suffered at Guantanamo. They told the audience that they were denied legal counsel, never charged, and when eventually released, never issued a formal apology by the U.S. or UK governments. ¶4. Ahmed and Rasul also said that all of the other detainees currently held in Guantanamo are in experiences similar to theirs in terms of innocence, capture circumstances, deprivations and torture. When asked about terrorism in general terms, Ahmed responded that Al-Qaeda was created by the USG as a convenient enemy and that there is no worldwide enemy. He added the terrorism in the world today is in response to Western provocation of Islam, and Muslims are simply fighting back. He called President Bush a terrorist, "because he terrorized me for two years in Guantanamo." Next Steps -------------- ¶5. In response to a question on lawsuits, Ahmed and Rasul told the audience that they are retaining legal help with the intent to sue the USG. They also mentioned that they intend to network with other "Guantanamo victims" (they have already met with some in Bahrain),and hope to lead international pressure in releasing the remaining detainees and closing the detention center. DUBLIN 00000362 002 OF 002 ¶6. Whitecross said that Tribeca Film Festival (Robert DeNiro's group) is showing the film in May in New York and Washington, and that he hopes to get wide distribution in the U.S. Ahmed and Rasul said that they plan to travel to the U.S. in June and follow the film, speaking to anti-war activists and drumming up publicity. Note: Visa issuance for the Tipton Three may be prove problematic beyond the initial suspicion of terrorism; at least two of the Tipton Three had criminal records prior to their ordeal in 2001. End note. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Visit Dublin's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/dublin/index. cfm KENNY