"As America mourns its dead, it forgets the millions brutalised in its wars of revenge. For many years, I have been asked whether I could forgive those who imprisoned, tortured, and dehumanised me. It is a loaded question; it is never just about personal forgiveness, but also an invitation to speak on behalf of all Guantanamo Bay prisoners. I usually reply that forgiveness is never simple, especially when justice has yet to be served."
"I was held in Guantanamo for nearly 15 years without charge, subjected to treatment no human being should ever endure. I was one of countless innocent people kidnapped during the global campaign of the United States of revenge and terror after September 11, 2001, which justified the illegal invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, unleashed and legalised torture programmes in CIA black sites and at Abu Ghraib, and turned Guantanamo into a laboratory of dehumanisation."
"In my cell, I once opened a boxed meal to find the words We Will Never Forget, We Will Never Forgive scrawled on the inside of the box. I wrote back: We Will Never Forget, We Will Never Forgive, We Will Fight For Our Justice. For this, the camp administration penalised me with food punishment and solitary confinement, claiming that my message was a death threat."
America's post-9/11 response produced illegal invasions, mass kidnappings, and state-sanctioned torture in CIA black sites, Abu Ghraib, and Guantanamo Bay. Many innocent people were held without charge, including one individual detained nearly 15 years and subjected to dehumanising treatment. Prison conditions included punishment for dissent and solitary confinement for expressing demands for justice. The slogan "Never Forget, Never Forgive" has been used both as grief and as a call for revenge, complicating notions of forgiveness. Forgiveness remains difficult when justice, accountability, and meaningful reflection have not occurred.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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