62 | Towards the Closure of Guantanamo Xenakis concludes that “the vast majority of these men do not fit the picture of the “worst of the worst.””140 129. According to the U.S. Government, Department of Defense policy authorizes healthcare personnel qualified in behavioral sciences to provide consultative services to support authorized law enforcement or intelligence activities, including observation and advice on the interrogation of detainees when the interrogations are fully in accordance with applicable law and interrogation policy. These behavioral science consultants are not, according to the Government, involved in the medical treatment of detainees, and the Government maintains that they do not access medical records. 141 130. The Inter-American Commission has also received information pertaining to religious and cultural competence issues that reportedly affect the detainees’ daily lives. Detainees have reportedly filed requests with the JT-Guananamo staff for a Muslim Chaplain; however, the authorities have allegedly responded that there is a Muslim cultural advisor who could provide advice on different aspects of their lives. Further, detainees have allegedly raised some concerns with regard to the food, in particular whether all the food provided to them is halal (allowed by their religion). 142 The IACHR notes in this regard that, according to the report issued by Adm. Walsh in 2009, “three hot halal meals per day – with 4500-5000 cal/day – are served to detainees in each camp, with six menus for detainees to choose from.”143 In 2012, the military denied reports that non-halal food was being provided to detainees at Camp 7. 144 In addition, as will be developed in the next section of this report, incidents involving the Koran, which is a very sensitive issue for Muslims, have caused several hunger strikes at Guantanamo. According to the U.S. Government, detainees at Guantanamo have the opportunity to pray five times each day. 145 The IACHR notes, however, that “high value detainees” at Camp 7 do not have the right to communal prayer, in contrast to other prisoners. 131. Neither the American Declaration nor the American Convention nor the InterAmerican Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture establish what should be understood by “cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment,” nor how it is to be 140 141 142 143 144 145 Senate Judiciary Committee: Closing Guantanamo: The National Security, Fiscal, and Human Rights Implications, Statement: Stephen N. Xenakis, M.D., Brigadier General (Retired), U.S. Army, July 24, 2013, pp. 3-4. Submission of the Government of the United States to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights with respect to the Draft Report on the Closure of Guantanamo, OEA/Ser.L/V.II.Doc. 30 January 2015, March 30, 2015, p. 7. IACHR’s Expert Meeting on the situation of detainees held at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Washington DC, October 3, 2013. U.S. Department of Defense, Review of Department Compliance with President’s Executive Order on Detainee Conditions of Confinement, February 23, 2009, p. 23. The Express Tribune, US commander denies non-Halal food given to Gitmo detainees, March 1, 2012. Available at: http://tribune.com.pk/story/343989/us-commander-denies-non-halal-food-given-to-gitmodetainees/ Submission of the Government of the United States to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights with respect to the Draft Report on the Closure of Guantanamo, OEA/Ser.L/V.II.Doc. 30 January 2015, March 30, 2015, p. 8. Organization of American States | OAS