Bring David Hicks home - thousands of people rally across Australia : Melbourne Indymedia

Thousands of people have attended rallies across Australia to mark the fifth anniversary of

Australian scapegoat David Hicks' detention without trial and without any sustainable charges being laid against him after the US Supreme Court in June declared that the military tribunals set up to try David Hicks and the other political scapegoats were illegal.

More than a thousand protesters have marched on the US Consulate in Sydney the rally began at Sydney's Town Hall with protesters wearing orange prison jumpsuits, symbolic of Hicks' treatment at the US detention centre at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where he has been held since early 2002.

Yesterday, more than 20 human rights groups, cultural organisations and politicians from NSW joined the rally to protest against David Hicks' imprisonment.

The demonstrators accused Prime Minister John Howard and the government of trampling upon Australia's democracy by not pushing for Hick's return.

Greens senator Kerry Nettle called on Mr Howard to personally take action.

"Make a phone call to your mate (US President) George W Bush and ask that David Hicks come home and spend Christmas with his family," she said.

"(Howard's) already shown us that he's not going to do it on the basis of compassion, he's not going to do it on the basis of humanity so let's make him do it on the basis that he'll lose (next year's federal) election if he doesn't."

The crowd erupted in applause.

Demonstrators also listened to Australian citizen Mamdouh Habib who was released from Guantanamo Bay in January 2005.

He had not been charged.

Mr Habib wore one of many t-shirts labelled: "Prisoner Exchange Program - Imprison Howard - Free Hicks".

"I'm not here to just say bring David Hicks back, I am here to let you know what's going on," he said.

"John Howard, he doesn't want (to) bring David Hicks here for so many reasons, because he's a good witness against the crime of the government overseas."

"Australian government (and) John Howard, he waits for David Hicks to turn up crazy in Camp Five.

"And, I'm telling you from here, I'm not scared from anybody. I'm not scared to go back to Guantanamo Bay. I'm telling John Howard, come here, take me back to Guantanamo Bay - I will be proud to be there ... with you, because you (are a) criminal."

Andrew Ferguson, NSW Secretary for the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), also criticised the government.

"I speak today not just from the (CFMEU) but many other progressive trade unions and tens of thousands of rank and file trade unionists that understand the unfair treatment of David Hicks is an issue that's fundamental to the working people in this country," Mr Ferguson said.

"These are fundamental issues of democratic rights.

"The opposition to the imprisonment of David Hicks is part of this much broader battle about civil liberties and democratic rights in this country."

Following the Town Hall rally, the protesters, under police escort, marched north up George Street to demonstrate outside the US Consulate in Martin Place.

Fools, goddam fools.. It is not about DAVID HICKS AT ALL!! David Hicks does NOT exist any more!

What David??! ..he is gone forever..

Sorry the david you ADORE is DEAD and now just a distant memory like... Cat Stevens, who disappeared from earth and became the holy man Yosef Islam...

David too is gone forever and he is now in the shape of Mohammad Islamabad or something of that nature. He cannot use the Jewish kings name any more - it is HARAM, HARAM HARAM!!!

And the silly Greens pretty Senator would do better to wish him back for next RHAMADAN because Mr. Muhammad (former "david") does not care for infidel Christian Christmas

It is not about David Hicks at all, it is about something completely different and it is not a pretty sight...

If u had done your research, you would know that this Aussie hick is still a devoted Muslim! He got no choice in this!

Like Cat Stevens who is now a new man as Yosef Islam, david hicks too has got a new IDENTITY and it is Muhammad something-something!

Once a Muslim you are a Muslim forever BECAUSE Islam do not permit leaving Islam! Sharia Law demand DEATH for apostates that become TRAITORS to Islam. Islam is not like other religions and ignorant naive people obviously think so.

Unfortunately it is very EASY to enter Islam. Just repeat three times a short mantra that says that you believe Muhammad is the big prophet and Allah is the only God, and that's it, you are a Muslim! BUT leaving is FORBIDDEN and very dangerous. Bloody hard to leave Islam alive! Remember, we don't make the rules - ISLAM DOES!!!

Judaism is the complete opposite - bloody hard to get in, easy-peasy to get out! Christianity is the revolving door of free choice - easy in, easy out -cos it is up to you what you wanna do!

On this subject and respectfully: What is former david hicks chosen and preferred name - apart from Muhammad? Come on, someone must know davids (non-Jewish king-name) name today???

Someone must know his preferred name??

According to the Old Testament, the Holy Scripture to both Jews and Christians, God (Allah in Arabic) promised Abraham (or Ibrahim) the land of Canaan (present day Israel & Palestine).

What the Orthodox Jews and Fundamentalist Christians keep on forgetting is that this promise is based on a covenant or agreement. The covenant promised that Abraham would have many descendants and Canaan would be their everlasting possession if they remain faithful to God (Gen. 17:4-8). To remain faithful means to follow God’s laws. Among them are the following:

1) Thou shall not kill
2) Thou shall not steal
3) Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor
4) Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's house or anything that belongs to thy neighbor
5) Love thy neighbor as thy self

All these laws are being violated by the state of Israel. There are so many United Nations General Assembly resolutions that the State of Israel and the United States of America violates and/or taken for granted and that they get way with it just shows that the UN is not really effective and democratic. The problems in the Middle East should have long been resolved if they had followed these resolutions.

(It should be noted that the Arabs trace their ancestry to Abraham’s oldest son, Ishmael while the Jews consider Abraham their ancestor through another son, Isaac)

It should also be noted that all major religions are supposed to teach love and caring for others:

Do not to others what ye do not wish done to yourself, and wish for others too what ye desire and long for yourself – Hinduism

Make thine own self the measure of the others, and so abstain from causing hurt to them - Buddhism

What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others – Confucianism

Love thy neighbour as thyself. That is the entire Law; all the rest is commentary – Judaism

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you – Christianity

No one of you is a believer until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself – Islam

Blessed is he who preferred his brother before himself - Baha'i Faith

I dont give a shit about David Hicks. His name isnt even David Hicks! he renounced his birth name and called himself Mohamed Dawood.
All the 'Leftie apologists' carrying on about 'Bring back Hicks' like they're bringing back a long lost friend. Blaming John Howard for not bringing him back sooner etc etc. As far as 'Fair Treatment' goes, he's certainly getting a lot fairer treatment in Guantanamo Bay than if the Taliban had caught an Allied soldier, what do ya reckon?
I for one certainly dont want him back here.
Look, he wasnt over there on holidays or reporting for some TV show was he or even on some protesting human shield hunger strike was he?, who's to say he could've quite easily bought back what he learned with the Taliban and blown something here? Who knows.. who cares.
The people I feel sorry for are his family.
Surely there are Australians in trouble else where in the world far more deserving of our attention than Mohamed Dawood.

NB: I see that he has now renounced his Islamic faith, mmmm isnt that punishable by death or something, although I guess he's not planning on going back to Afghanistan too soon.

Norm of Castle Hill Sydney