January 30, 2007

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

As many of you know, my law partner, Ellen Lubell and I have volunteered to represent a Guantanamo detainee.  As citizens and as lawyers, we have been profoundly disturbed by the reports of our government’s treatment of detainees at Guantanamo and the appalling lack of legal process afforded to them. Guantanamo has come to symbolize this country’s abandonment of international and domestic law.  More than 775 detainees have been held there since January 11, 2002, and not one of them has been convicted of any crime.

With the suicide of three detainees this past June, Ellen and I felt that we had to take action.  We contacted the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York (CCR) (www.ccr-ny.org), which is coordinating defense efforts on behalf of the detainees, and were assigned to represent Mr. Abdul Aziz Naji, a 31 year old Arabic-speaking Algerian man who has been detained in Guantanamo for approximately five years.  We have learned that Mr. Naji is a metal worker and was picked up in Kashmir, the victim of a land mine explosion that cost him one leg.

Ellen and I have received security clearance and will be traveling to Guantanamo to learn additional facts about our client and determine what actions we can take to secure a fair hearing for him and, if appropriate, his release.  Until now, he has had no legal representation during the five years of his detention.  We are in regular contact with a group of lawyers from around the country who are also representing Guantanamo detainees, and who share ideas and strategies with one another.

We are providing legal services on a pro bono (no charge) basis, but we will be incurring significant expenses as we proceed: airfare to Guantanamo on several occasions for each of us and an Arabic interpreter; the cost of accommodations at the base; interpreters’ fees; and airfare to Washington, DC to examine classified information held in the government’s “secure facility,” and to appear before the court as required.  Other Guantanamo attorneys have advised us that these costs will run about $20,000 or more per year. Most of the other attorneys who are representing Guantanamo detainees are members of large law firms that cover these types of expenses, but in our case the “firm” is just us.  If you would like to make a contribution to help us defray our costs, it would be much appreciated. Please make your check payable to “Tennant Lubell Detainee Fund.”

Your contribution will not be tax-deductible, but we promise to put it to good use to help provide fundamental legal rights to a man who remains in indefinite detention. I hope you’ll call or e-mail me (dtennant@tllawgroup.com) if you have questions.

Thank you for your support,

Doris Tennant