A return to prison
January 4, 2024
On January 4, 1932, Gandhi was woken before dawn by a policeman. “Mr. Gandhi,” he was told, “it is my duty to arrest you.”
Gandhi always welcomed arrest; it is said he greeted the announcement with a smile, and requested permission to brush his teeth first (it was granted). He said goodbye to his youngest son and his wife Kasturba. (They would soon be arrested as well.) Their grandson Rajmohan records there were tears in her eyes as she pleaded, “Please pardon me if I have offended you in any way.” There was a real possibility that this would be their last meeting, that he would die in prison.
There was no specific charge against him; Gandhi was arrested and detained under an obscure regulation from 1827, just as he had been after the Salt March. There would be no trial or court appearances where he could present a defense, no opportunity to publicly question the justification for his incarceration. His international renown accorded him some comforts, but he would remain behind bars at the whim of the British Empire until beginning a hunger strike three-week water fast more than 16 months later.
Looking back at the event, it's easy to condemn it. Habeas corpus (Latin for “show me the body”) has been a bedrock of justice for at least seven hundred years. Gandhi's indefinite detention further tarnished the moral authority of the government, which had suffered in the court of worldwide opinion since the Salt March. Yet the British persisted, perhaps not recognizing the damage they were inflicting on their prestige.
Sadly, the United States finds itself in a similar situation. Next week marks the 22nd anniversary of the opening of the Guantanamo Bay Military Prison in Cuba, where our government continues to incarcerate 30 men, most of who are like Toffiq Al-Bihani; never charged with anything, and also cleared for release! Al-Bihani arrived at Gitmo in 2003, and was approved for release seven years later. But he and 15 others are still not actually allowed to leave! (It could be worse: one detainee was promptly “disappeared” by Saudi Arabia after being transferred into their custody.)
Gitmo tarnishes America's moral authority, and I look forward to the day when we close it down.
What would you do if you were unjustly incarcerated?