12 June 2009

The Uighur Foreign Exchange Program Cost $200M


The tiny island-nation of Palau, which I am unable to locate on a map at this time, is citing its stance on Human Rights as reason for allowing the transfer of 17 Uighur Gitmo detainees from one tropical climate to another. But Wall Street Journal cites another reason (h/t TCJ):

Months of moral grandstanding and intense diplomacy are finally yielding dividends: President Obama has convinced Palau, a Pacific archipelago and long-standing U.S. ally, to resettle a small group of the least dangerous Guantanamo detainees. All it took was $200 million in foreign aid to a country with 20,000 residents and a GDP of about $164 million.

Headed to Palau are the Uighurs, ethnic Chinese Muslims who were picked up in 2002 near Tora Bora.
Damn! For $200 Million from Uncle Sucker, I would've let these 17 yahoos come hang out in my apartment. I would've even provided complimentary laptops.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

200M and they can have my house, and my wife.

LogicallyLocked said...

Palau is right next to us here in Guam. Absolutely beautiful island, with some of the best scuba diving in the World! And a really cool jelly fish lake.

Average American said...

That's almost 12 million each. I won't be greedy, just send me one of them. Better yet, a half of one!

Do you suppose that will be enough to "stimulate" Palua? He sure hasn't "stimulated" much around here!!!

NateSF said...

Didn't Palau also take that boatload of Afghani refugees that Australia didn't want a few years back?

Nixon said...

How come these refugees keep getting dumped in tropical paradises? Whatever happened to the gulags of Siberia?

Lisa said...

"How come these refugees keep getting dumped in tropical paradises?"

Yeah! "Palau for Detroit Autoworkers" how about?

As for where or what Palau is, all I know is what I read in the Nat. Enquirer: Isn't that where that student who impregnated his teacher in a van -- twice! -- came from? Yeah -- and now he's some tattoo artist.

The future of the Uighars. . .