The Ethics of Force-feeding Guantanamo Prisoners
Amid the recent news that there is yet another hunger strike in the Guantanamo Bay prison, it may be worth noting that twenty-five years ago last month Bobby Sands, a twenty-seven year old Irish prisoner, died during a hunger strike in a prison administered by the British. To the Brits he and his nine fellow prisoners were “terrorists”. To many people in Ireland, he and his colleagues were “resistors” and heroes.
Margaret Thatcher, the British Prime Minister at the time, allowed them to starve to death. President Bush has chosen force-feeding. This may be in violations of international law, and almost certainly it is a violation of statutes of the World Medical Association’s 1973 Declaration. American doctors are required to adhere to these protocols as members of the American Medical Association. (Although such membership is not a requirement for practicing medicine in the US.)
Perhaps it is worth noting that Sands is still a hero to many in Ireland, while her Conservative Party no longer holds Mrs. Thatcher in such high esteem.
Click here for a PDF of the “Tipton Report” a lengthy statement about alleged abusive treatment by detainees in Camp X-ray.
Click here for more information about Bobby Sands