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Freedom of Information Act Filed for Identities of Arrested
By Marilee Miller
Medill News Service
WASHINGTON -- Twenty-two human rights and news organizations filed a Freedom
of Information Act request Monday to learn the identities of more than 800
individuals arrested after the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center
and Pentagon.
U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wi., is to send a letter later this week to
Attorney General John Ashcroft demanding information as well, according to
his press secretary.
The organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Arab
American Institute, Human Rights Watch, and the Nation, requested the names
of the individuals detained, locations where they are held, names of
attorneys representing them, and the charges filed. They also requested a
list of the courts that issued secrecy orders. This information, typically
available to the public, has been kept private in this case.
"The unprecedented secrecy surrounding the detention of several hundred
individuals, which has now lasted for several weeks, in itself raises
questions about the detentions and creates the utmost urgency to inform the
public," the organizations wrote.
The majority of the people arrested appear to be Arabs and Muslims,
spokesman Gregory Nojeim said, but comprehensive information has not yet
been released.
Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies, said, "We
do not live in a country where the government can keep secret who they
arrest, where they are being held, or the charges against them." She called
the detentions "frighteningly close to the practice of disappearing people
in Latin America."
Many of those detained have been held without probable cause and are being
deprived of their right to due process and to an attorney, she said. Some
have been injured while in government custody, she said, citing
word-of-mouth reports.
Nancy Chang, senior litigation attorney at the Center for Constitutional
Rights, said a 55-year-old Pakistani man died in custody in New Jersey.
"Officials said they believed it was the result of a heart attack, but I
think that's far from clear," she said. "There's nothing implicating him in
the Sept. 11 attacks. His immigration status was not legal, but he had
agreed to leave the country without contesting the deportation and then
died."
Judith Olingy, professor of law at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said
that while this is "absolutely uncharted and unprecedented," there are
probably investigative concerns preventing the release of information.
"They think that releasing names could tip off other people associated with
terrorists cells. It could be cause for retributions," she said.
Olingy believes FBI and Justice Department workers are "very professional
and they want to do right and do a good job. Their purposes are not
nefarious. I think they have very legitimate security reasons for not
releasing information."
The FBI did not return calls for comment.
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