From the "about the show" page for Air America's The Laura Flanders Show:
In his first interview with the US media, freed Guantanamo Bay detainee, Martin Mubanga tells Laura Flanders 'What Really Happened at Guantanamo Bay'. Read the article, or LISTEN to the interview, first broadcast on The Laura Flanders Show on Sunday, May 22, 2005.
The article "What Really Happened at Guantanamo Bay?" is posted at AlterNet. Here's an excerpt:
Laura Flanders: Did Newsweek lie about abuse of the Qu'ran? What did you see?
Martin Mubanga: From my own personal experience and from what I know of what occurs in Guantanamo Bay, this is actually an ongoing thing for the past three years, so we don't need Newsweek to corroborate or substantiate these accusations. We who have been in Guantanamo Bay know that these and other things occur in degradation of our religion.
You described a situation where your cell was searched by six or seven military police and a Qu'ran was thrown to the ground. Can you explain why that was so offensive to you?
In our religion, firstly, the Qu'ran is believed to be the word of God, who we refer to as Allah in our religion. Basically the Qu'ran is supposed to be treated with respect and most people believe that the Qu'ran should be placed in a high place in a house or only taken with respect in a certain condition of purification or ablution. It's never to be placed on a floor, on a dirty floor or to be treated or to be mishandled in any way.
What did those six or seven military police do?
At the time, there was a story going around that I was supposed to be a top-notch fighter, as they said, and they tried to provoke me in many ways to see what I could do. This was one of the methods that was used to see if I would fight and I believe that's why they chose me on this particular occasion and threw the Qu'ran on the floor.
To read more, click the link.
One more time, Matthew Rothschild, editor of The Progressive, will be on The Laura Flanders Show tonight.
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