Yunus Rahmatullah's hearing: Take 2

I stepped inside the Royal Courts of Justice for the first time, about six months ago to hear the case of Yunus Rahmatullah. I was new to Reprieve, and conscious I should be in the office working so I didn’t stay long; but last week I had the chance to spend the whole day in the Court of Appeal there, unfortunately because the first case didn’t work out.

Yunus was captured in Iraq and has been detained in Bagram Airbase, Afghanistan, for over seven and a half years without trial. He was captured by the British and handed over to the Americans under a Memorandum of Understanding which ensured he would be treated in accordance with the Geneva Conventions, yet – although no one said as much in court - Bagram is notorious for abusive practices.

When did we wash our hands of him? It was a question that was asked more than once. The war in Iraq is officially over and as his captors we have the authority to ask for him to be returned. Or do we? The Government suggested that to be issued a writ ordering them to ask for his return would be diplomatically ‘undesirable’ and besides, we don’t have sufficient control they argued. We should centre our definition of ‘control’ in the reality of international relations for a start.

But what about Yunus’ reality? And if we don’t have control, what was the point of agreeing two Memorandums of Understanding in 2003 and again in 2008 which suggest that we do? As I sat there listening, I wondered how he would feel about his liberty being traded on an international level without consultation; and as I reflected further it hit home that he is the same age as many friends. For most of our twenties he’s been held in a legal black hole, far outside of normal life. Isn’t it about time we fought for him? Even if it might be a little embarrassing?