Boston Metro on the January 11, 2007 Protest

January 12, 2007
Protesters rally against Bush’s troop increase plan^*

By Tony Lee

Hordes of activists hit area streets yesterday in reaction to President Bush’s announcement he will send more troops to Iraq, and to the fifth anniversary of the controversial Guantanamo Bay detention center.

One of many worldwide protests against Bush’s plan to install about 21,500 troops in Iraq took place on Boston Common, followed by a march of hundreds on Copley Square, where those enraged by the alleged mistreatment in Guantanamo Bay had their voices heard.

“You’ve got five years of prisoners being held outside the law,” said Joshua Rubenstein, Northeast Regional Director for Amnesty International. “The America we believe in does not imprison people without charge. The America we believe in does not use torture.”

According to Rubenstein, only 10 of the 700-plus detainees who have been brought to the prison have been charged with any crime. Reports of abuse, torture and suicide attempts have been rampant.

“The U.S. has lost its way on the road to Guantanamo Bay,” Rubenstein said. “We have imprisoned not just these individual prisoners but American ideals of justice and fairness.”