Afterthought: The Road to Guantanamo

No one warned me about it.

Like a tsunami, it completely swept me away and left me stunned. Like a molten hot rod, it left a lasting mark on me which I will not forget.

This was what the movie "The Road to Guantanamo" (2006) did to me last night. The story depicts the tragic fate of three young Britons of Pakistani origin (known as the 'Tipton Three') who were captured by the Northern Alliance Soldiers while traveling in Afghanistan (They traveled to Afghanistan at the time just before U.S. was about to bomb the country after 911). They were later handed over to the U.S. military who suspected them of being involved in terrorist activities. They were then sent to Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba, and suffered two years of inhumane torture and humiliation. They were eventually released without charges and without any compensation.

Some thoughts about the movie:

1. Can war ever be justified? As I watched innocent civilians running for their lives from bullets and bombs, I wondered what wrong have they done to deserve this. Nothing! U.S. may have her reasons to justify her invasion on Afghanistan, but how do you justify the plight of the innocent civilians who lost their properties, friends, family members, and even their own lives? How do you justify the inhumane treatment that was given to those detainees who were actually innocent? The tag line of the movie is worth pondering, "How far will we go in the name of security?" I don't think any reason can ever justify the war.

2. When the suspects were brought to the detention camp, they were treated as terrorists even before they were proven guilty. They were in fact given the treatment of "guilty until proven innocent." The soldiers treated them like animals, stripping them off their basic human rights and more importantly, their dignity. Even if some of them could really be terrorists (in fact one of the Tipton Three confessed recently that he had once visited an Islamist training camp, handled weapons and learned how to use AK-47 in the camp, thus causing many to question their innocence), they should be treated with dignity and respect. What more for those who are innocent. Sometimes, I think we Christians are no better, for we easily strip people of their dignity by showing contempt and condemnation whenever we find out that someone had done (or suspected of doing) something wrong. We who know that we are saved only by the grace of God, we who know that we are all depraved and fallen sinners, should know better than these soldiers!

3. The detainees were bound in chain all the time in the detention camp. This brings to my mind a fellow seminarian's preaching not long ago in the seminary. He brought up the incident of Iraqi prisoners who were humiliated as they were bound by dog collars around their necks. Whenever the Iraqis see a dog collar, it was a sign of humiliation for it reminds them of the humiliation that their fellow Iraqis went through. In the same way, the cross was a sign of humiliation to the Jews (especially to the Jewish Christians) for it was the harshest treatment for the worst of the worst. That is why Paul said that Christ crucified is a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles (1 Cor 1:23). The movie reminds me of the intensity of shame and humiliation that Jesus had to go through, and the cross should serve as a sign of humiliation of Christ for me, rather than a mere sign of my Christian faith.

4. At the end of the movie, the Tipton Three said that the whole experience had certainly changed their life, causing them to look at things differently. This reminds me of my recent post "The Blessing of Adversity" whereby I said that adversity can make you bitter or better. This movie reaffirms my understanding and necessity (this does not mean that we seek after suffering) of suffering to shape our lives to become Christlike.

Go catch the movie if you have not watch it!

You have been warned.