A former detainee at the Guantanamo prison has been denied asylum in Switzerland by the Federal Court.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch and agencies
The supreme court announced the ethnic Uighur could not sufficiently justify his request since he has been living in the Pacific island of Palau since his release from the United States detention camp on Cuba.
The man had made an application for asylum in Switzerland in 2008, which was rejected by the Federal Migration Office, and then handed in an appeal.
He argued the health service on Palau could not provide the necessary care to treat his prison trauma.
A member of an ethnic minority in China, the man was arrested in Pakistan in 2002 and sent to Guantanamo for five years.
At the request of Washington, Switzerland last year granted asylum to two other Uighurs from Guantanamo.
In a separate development, the Swiss government has asked parliament to extend a ban on the Islamist al-Qaeda terror organisation for a further three years. The ban was imposed after the 9/11 attacks ten years ago.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Guantanamo Uighurs take steps towards integration
This content was published on
However, communication and getting used to another culture has presented the two brothers with challenges – as has living with the memories of Guantanamo. Arkin and Bahtiyar Mahmut spent seven-and-a-half years in the United States-run prison, of which two were in solitary confinement, without being charged or convicted. The men, who come from the Turkic-speaking…
This content was published on
A Swiss Red Cross expert on torture tells swissinfo.ch that the men most likely will suffer from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the treatment handed out at the United States prison camp. Brigitte Ambühl is in charge of medicine and therapy at the Red Cross outpatients clinic for victims of torture…
Marty calls for collective responsibility on Guantánamo
This content was published on
The Swiss senator told swissinfo that the “illegal prison” on the Cuban island was a sign of an arbitrary and inefficient policy against terrorism. Marty said the international community needed to find a humanitarian solution for the camp’s inmates. The US has come under heavy pressure from Europe to close the prison and while European…
This content was published on
A series of portraits of torture- and war victims who received help from two centres in Bern and Zurich. The patients were observed by photographer Meinrad Schade and the author Martina Kamm and their stories included in an exhibition publication. (All images by Meinrad Schade)
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.