US pressured to drop commission to try alleged terrorists

1.00pm

MELBOURNE - The United States is coming under increasing pressure to abandon the military commission it set up to try alleged terrorists, including Australian David Hicks.

US officials privately acknowledge that the process is in turmoil and say substantial changes will be made to restore its credibility, Melbourne's The Age newspaper reported today.

The newspaper said some of the commission members were likely to be changed as an inadequate translation system improved.

A spokesman for Attorney-General Philip Ruddock told the newspaper Australia had raised concerns with the US authorities and expected changes would be made to meet American assurances that the process would be fair.

The latest criticism within the US comes from deputy chief judge of the US Air Force Lieutenant-Colonel Sharon Shaffer, who is defending a detainee.

Colonel Shaffer has filed a motion urging the government to drop the process altogether and begin again using standard military court-martial procedures, the newspaper said.

She said the military commission was an archaic system, its flaws could not be fixed and it would not provide a fair trial.

On September 5, Mr Ruddock and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer announced they had raised concerns with the US about the handling of the military commission trial of David Hicks.

Earlier this month, the federal government dismissed a report that found the US military commission trying Australian terrorist suspect David Hicks was flawed.

The report by Lex Lasry, QC, found the proceedings of the commission made it "virtually impossible" for Hicks to get a fair trial.

Hicks, 29, of Adelaide has been held by the US at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba for more than two years and has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder by an unprivileged, belligerent, conspiracy and aiding the enemy.

- AAP