The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday, that Guantanamo detainees have a constitutional right to challenge their detention in civilian courts effectively overturning the Military Commisions Act of 2006. The Real News Network’s senior editor Paul Jay asked Michael Ratner about the significance of the decision. Ratner, of the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York has been fighting for several years to ensure Guantanamo detainees have a day in court. Yesterday’s decision is huge, he said, as it restores habeas corpus for detainees and reaffirms the meaning of the Constitution.
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Guantanamo prisoners have rights – Supreme Court
by Michael Ratner, The Real News Network June 14, 2008
Michael Ratner is President Emeritus of the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) in New York and Chair of the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights in Berlin. He is currently a legal adviser to Wikileaks and Julian Assange. He and CCR brought the first case challenging the Guantanamo detentions and continue in their efforts to close Guantanamo. He taught at Yale Law School, and Columbia Law School, and was President of the National Lawyers Guild. His current books include Hell No: Your Right to Dissent in the Twenty-First Century America, and Who Killed Che? How the CIA Got Away With Murder.
NOTE: Mr. Ratner speaks on his own behalf and not for any organization with which he is affiliated.