Ottawa

Reading the documents: Adventures in redaction

Highlights from the recently released Afghan detainee documents

The Afghan detainee documents tabled last month can be viewed in their entirety here. Herein, a look at some of the noteworthy files and disclosures contained therein.

POA 0007 is an overview of the situation in Afghanistan circa 2005. It is most notable for what was previously redacted and now disclosed: references to torture, abuse and various problems with the Afghan justice system.

POA 0014, similarly, is an overview of the situation in Afghanistan circa 2006. Where redactions in the “summary” section of POA 0007 have been removed, they remain in POA 0014. But what’s behind one of these redactions seems to have been revealed four years ago by the Globe. And connecting those dots, it would seem that what has been unredacted by the panel of arbiters in POA 0007 remains redacted in POA 0014.

POA 0010 is an enlightening read: eight pages blacked out in their entirety.

See previously: Reading the documents, DFAIT 10, What the detainees said and Notification, policy and concerns.

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