The controversy continues over what to do with 17 Uigher (Uyghur) Chinese Muslim detainees being held at Gitmo. Now a German city says it will give them asylum, although the German government is so far noncommittal. From Canwest News Service:
NEW YORK — The German city of Munich added its name Friday to communities offering to welcome members of the Chinese minority Uyghur group detained at Guantanamo Bay — presenting possible alternatives to Canada as activists press Ottawa to accept at least three.
The US says the Uighers caught on battlefields in Afghanistan are not a terrorism threat to the West, but to the Chinese they are terrorists.
The Uyghurs are somewhat of an exceptional case in that the 17 are the only remaining Guantanamo detainees who have been totally cleared by the U.S. authorities of having terrorist links.
But the United States fears they may face torture or other abuse if returned to China, which does consider them terrorists who seek an independent Muslim homeland in the northwestern part of the country.
China wants them back. Could we have an uptick in international tension over what to do with the prisoners from the soon-to-be-closed military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and whether they will be given asylum in the West?
Beyond any security concerns, there remains the possibility that settling Guantanamo Uyghurs will lead to friction with China, whose embassy in Ottawa Friday issued a statement calling on governments to reject the “Chinese terrorist suspects.”
Ho hum, another hot potato for the Obama Administration which will ultimately make the decision.