incommunicado and subjected to torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment
before being further subjected to refoulement out of Djibouti into the hands of the
U.S. Government’s agents.
95.
The Complainant states that given the clandestine design of the extraordinary
rendition program to which the Complainant was subjected, information is kept so
tightly secret that access is highly restricted. In this regard the Complainant invites
the Commission to take this into account in adopting the appropriate standard of
proof for assessing whether a prima facie case of violations has been made out.
96.
Regarding exhaustion of domestic remedies, the Complainant reiterates his
earlier arguments: that during his detention, domestic remedies were unavailable to
him. In this regard the Complainant states that the violations he suffered were made
possible because under the ‘Agreement between the Government of the USA and the
Government of Djibouti” (2003 Status of Forces Agreement, SOFA), the latter allowed
the former unimpeded entry into Djiboutian territory through Camp Lamonnier.
Further under the same Agreement, air crafts and motor vehicles were allowed to
enter, move freely within the territory of Djibouti, and exit without any search or
other form of oversight by Djiboutian authorities.
97.
The Complainant argues that the immunity granted to the USA Government
personnel at Camp Lamonnier under the SOFA Agreement, and the immunities
generally available under international law for foreign states meant that Djibouti
gave the USA Government personnel “carte balance” (sic) to use its territory to
illegally detain and interrogate individuals.
98.
Regarding post-facto remedies, the Complainant also reiterates his earlier
arguments concerning the unavailability, ineffectiveness and insufficiency, including
in particular on the basis that the Respondent State has not undertaken an effective
investigation to discover more facts on the basis of which criminal and civil remedies
could be pursued before domestic courts in Djibouti.
99.
In response to the Respondent State’s arguments on the time taken before
submitting this Communication, the Complainant again reiterates his earlier
arguments, and adds that the facts that he had had to locate his family to Yemen and
reconstruct his life altogether. He states that this occupied the three years that
elapsed between his release from prison and the presentation of this
Communication.
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