(Newswire.net — February 25, 2016) —President Barack Obama is planning the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay, saying he doesn’t wish to leave this issue for his successor to deal with. He explained that the prison is counterproductive in the fight against terrorism as it is used as an anti-American propaganda for recruiting terrorists, reports the AP.
Closing Guantanamo also closes a chapter in the history of the United States and reflects the lessons learned from the terrorist attack on September 11th 2001, said the US president.
He presented the plan, stating that the United States should continue to send low-risk detainees to other countries, and explained that other prisons could potentially replace the Guantanamo Bay detention center and bring about several million dollars saved in the budget.
Guantanamo, which once held 700 detainees and had become synonymous with torture, indefinite detention and orange overalls; now only has a total of 91 prisoners, according to AFP.
Barack Obama has advocated for the closure of the detention unit since he became president of the US. These efforts have been thwarted by Republicans who believe that Guantanamo is useful in the fight against terrorism.
Obama urged Congress to maintain a fair session on his plan, saying he did not want to leave the matter to his successor in the White House, reports Reuters.
His plan envisages the transfer of the remaining detainees to the United States, and requests that Congress approve $475 million to build a prison or to improve an already existing one that would act as a replacement. It would overall save $180 million in operating costs per year.
The plan to close the Guantanamo Bay prison does not give many details about where in the United States its detainees would be transferred. The military prison in Leavenworth, Kansas and the naval prison in Charleston, South Carolina were mentioned as possible replacements but was met with resistance from local authorities.
In recent weeks, US Secretary of Defense, Ashton Carter, has signed a number of transfer decisions taking the number of detainees below 100 for the first time. Now there are 91 prisoners.
Barack Obama believes that many of the prisoners from Guantanamo should be transferred to other countries and that some of them should be tried before a military tribunal.
Congress, however, has issued a ban on the transfer of detainees to the United States, which further deepens the legal difficulties.