An analyst says hunger strikers at Guantanamo perceive they have been forgotten by the world and this is a final message to say we’re still here and we should be released.

In the background of this seven more detainees in Guantanamo Prison have decided to go on hunger strike, joining the mass of 45 other inmates. The initial group of 13 has now surpassed their 70th day on hungers strike as the US ignores pleas from rights organizations to sincerely address the issue. The US government at first denied the event of hunger strikes at Guantanamo and were forced to come clean, but have tried to play down the seriousness of it all. Guards are attempting to physically force prisoners to eat and insiders are worried that a humanitarian tragedy is about to break out with seemingly no interest by the Obama administration to face up to this now critical issue. The issue of course is the inhumane and unconstitutional treatment received at the hands of US brutality and indefinite detainment without charge for more than a decade.

Press TV has interviewed Martha Rayner, clinical associate professor at law, New York about this issue. The following is an approximate transcription of the interview.

Press TV: We’re looking now at an increase in terms of the numbers of hunger strikers at Guantanamo. The US has a challenge on their hands, but yet we are looking at the rights of these detainees, which is obviously one of the pivotal points behind their strike. What kind of outcome do you foresee coming from this?

Rayner: Well, the numbers of hunger strikers are definitely rising. Just within a week’s time the number have risen by seven; an additional seven people are on hunger strike at least as acknowledged by the government.

There is now currently 52 men who the government itself has recognized are hunger striking. And the number of men that are being force-fed has risen as well. So this is a significant increase.

The men are telling their lawyers that there are far more people on hunger strike – these are just the men, the numbers that the military will acknowledge.

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