Imagine being cleared of wrong doing and then  issued with the papers clearing you for release, yet still being left behind bars with no idea when you might be free or why you are still detained.

This is the nightmare that  British resident Shaker Aamer has been living since 2002. Twelve years ago today  he was transported to Guantanamo Bay. He has been held there ever since.  Today is also the 12^thbirthday of Shaker’s youngest son, a child he has never seen.

During his detention Shaker has been tortured by US agents – for example, by having his head repeatedly banged against a wall – and has witnessed the torture of another UK resident.

He has spent more than 1000 nights in a windowless isolation cell and when first detained was starved, kept awake for 9 days straight and chained into positions that made the slightest movement unbearable.

In 2005 he was placed in isolation for 360 days for his role in organising a hunger strike after military police beat up a prisoner while he was praying – the prison rules only permit isolation for 30 days. Since then he has spent further extended periods in solitary confinement.

Shaker was officially cleared for transfer out of Guantanamo in June 2007, when a security assessment by the US Government acknowledged it had no concrete evidence against him.

He is also in possession of a US official document that states, “On January 22, 2009 the President of the United States ordered a new review of the status of each detainee in Guantanamo. As a result of that review you have been cleared for transfer out of Guantanamo……The US government intends to transfer you as soon as possible…..”

And yet he still isn’t being allowed to leave. The US has told Foreign Secretary William Hague that Shaker’s clearance is limited to release to Saudi Arabia – despite neither of the clearances being limited in their application.

Britain has the best record of all countries taking in prisoners from Guantánamo Bay. Contrast this with Saudi Arabia where, despite its vaunted ‘rehabilitation programme’, a larger number have committed subsequent acts of terrorism than any other nation.  The only possible reason for sending Shaker to Saudi Arabia is to stop him from speaking out about his abuse – abuse in which the UK authorities have been complicit.

Shaker’s treatment and the existence of Guantanamo Bay is a clear reminder that some of the worst consequences of the ‘War On Terror’ remain with us today. Shaker has been the subject of almost unimaginable breaches of his fundamental rights. He has also been defamed by the British authorities and we urgently need new legislation to stop this happening to ohers in future – and for there to be potential for individuals to get redress if it does. My attempts to do this via the Justice and Security Bill last year won very little support on the Coalition or Opposition benches.

For the sake of Shaker, his family and the other remaining detainees in Guantanamo Bay it’s crucial to keep up the fight for justice. To stand up for what matters. Imagine spending 12 years wrongfully locked up and being forgotten about.  We must remember Shaker, today and every day until he is free.