Jump to content

Alka Pradhan

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Alka Pradhan is an American human rights attorney[1] who has represented Guantanamo Bay detainees, civilian drone strike victims, and other torture victims.[2][3] She currently works for the U.S. Department of Defense, Military Commissions Defense Organization and represents Ammar al-Baluchi in the case of United States v. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.[4] Pradhan also works as a defence attorney at the International Criminal Court.[5]

Early life and education

[edit]

Pradhan received a BA from Johns Hopkins University, an MA from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, a JD from Columbia Law School, and an LLM from the London School of Economics.[6]

Career

[edit]

Pradhan was formerly an attorney at Reprieve. In 2014, her team sued the U.S. government over force-feeding techniques used on detainees at Guantanamo Bay.[7]

Pradhan has worked with members of the UK Parliament and European Parliament on torture investigations. She was a speaker for the "Complicity and Counterterrorism" series sponsored by an All-Party Parliamentary Group on Renditions in 2017.

In 2017, Pradhan led al-Baluchi's case before the UN Working Group of Arbitrary Detention. The Working Group determined that al-Baluchi was being subjected to arbitrary detention by the United States government, and recommended his immediate release.[8]

Pradhan was one of the subjects of the 2019 Field of Vision documentary The Trial,[9] about the Guantanamo Bay military commissions.[10] Pradhan frequently speaks publicly about the impact of the CIA torture program on the detainees at Guantanamo[11][12] and the lack of accountability for CIA and Bush administration officials who authorized torture.[13] In an interview with Christiane Amanpour, Pradhan stated that detainee torture "is the nasty center of this entire endeavour of the military commissions at Guantanamo."[14] She has also stated regarding Ammar al-Baluchi's prosecution that "I don't think that there is any real evidence the government has at this point that is not tainted by his torture."[15]

In April 2025, Pradhan and her legal team obtained a win for al-Baluchi when a military judge excluded government evidence from his Guantanamo Bay military commission as torture-acquired.[16] The provenance of the evidence had been litigated for nearly seven years prior to the ruling.[17] Pradhan stated that the ruling was "a reminder to the United States that governments that commit crimes must be hald accountable."[18]

Pradhan appeared in the 2019 documentary The Long Haul, about the life and career of human rights lawyer Professor Sir Nigel Rodley.[19]

The 2020 graphic novel Guantanamo Voices by Sarah Mirk featured a chapter on Pradhan, illustrated by Tracy Chahwan.[20] The same year, Pradhan was included on a list of "DC Rising Stars: 40 Under 40."[21]

In 2021, Pradhan joined the defence team of Al-Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud before the International Criminal Court.[22] Evidence against Al-Hassan is alleged to have been tainted by his torture in Mali.[23] [24]

Pradhan was named a Global Democracy Goodwill Ambassador by the Korea Democracy Foundation from 2025-2027, following several years of collaboration.[25] Pradhan attended the opening of National Museum of Korean Democracy in Seoul in June 2025, and spoke on the importance of preserving memory in democracies.

Pradhan is considered an expert on the interaction between the law of war and human rights law; the prohibition on torture; and the impact of coerced evidence on fair trials.[26] In 2025, Pradhan and co-author Benjamin Farley won honorable mention for the Lieber Prize from the American Society of International Law for their paper entitled "Establishing a Practical Test for the End of Non-International Armed Conflict."[27]

Professional affiliations

[edit]

Pradhan is an adjunct professor at Penn Law School[28] and a former Co-Chair of the Human Rights Law Committee of the International Bar Association. Pradhan is also a member of the Board of Directors of the International Law Students Association.[29] Pradhan was a member of the Drafting Group for the Principles on Effective Interviewing for Investigations and Information-Gathering, often referred to as the "Méndez Principles" to honor the former UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Juan E. Méndez.[30] [31]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Stern, Jeffrey E. (December 19, 2017). "Alka Pradhan v. Gitmo (Published 2017)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  2. ^ "Yemeni tells White House of US drone strike that he says killed innocent kin". NBC News. 21 November 2013. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  3. ^ Swain, Elise (November 22, 2020). "Joe Biden's Silence on Ending the Drone Wars". The Intercept. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  4. ^ "Trial Guide: The Sept. 11 Case at Guantánamo Bay". Pulitzer Center. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  5. ^ "Notification of the Appointment of Ms Alka Pradhan as Associate Counsel for Mr Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud". International Criminal Court. Retrieved 2023-05-17.
  6. ^ "Penn Law Faculty: Alka Pradhan". www.law.upenn.edu. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  7. ^ "Guantánamo force-feeding timeline". Reprieve US. June 22, 2016. Archived from the original on April 30, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  8. ^ "OHCHR | Guantanamo detention of Ammar al Baluchi breaches human rights law, UN experts say". www.ohchr.org. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  9. ^ Edenbrow, Johanna Hamilton Laura Poitras Charlotte Cook Charlie Phillips Jacqueline (February 22, 2019). "The Trial: inside Guantánamo with 9/11 suspect Ammar al-Baluchi – video". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  10. ^ The lawyers defending 9/11 suspects at Gitmo - CNN Video, 25 March 2019, retrieved March 9, 2021
  11. ^ Pfeiffer, Sacha (23 January 2020). "CIA Used Prisoner As 'Training Prop' For Torture, Psychologist Testifies". NPR. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  12. ^ "Guantánamo lawyers see issues in torture exhibit at spy museum". the Guardian. May 27, 2019. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  13. ^ "Trump consults Bush torture lawyer on how to skirt law and rule by decree". the Guardian. July 20, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  14. ^ "CNN.com - Transcripts". transcripts.cnn.com. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  15. ^ Barghouty, P. Leila. "One week at Gitmo". The Outline. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  16. ^ "Sept. 11 Judge Suppresses Confessions Due to CIA Torture". April 11, 2025.
  17. ^ "Military Judge Throws Out Sept. 11 Case Confession As Obtained Through Torture". April 11, 2025.
  18. ^ "Military Judge Throws Out Sept. 11 Case Confession as Obtained Through Torture". April 11, 2025.
  19. ^ "IBA - The Long Haul: Showing of a film inspired by Professor Sir Nigel Rodley". www.ibanet.org. Retrieved March 9, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  20. ^ Mirk, Sarah (2021-10-15). "Guantánamo Voices: True Accounts From the World's Most Infamous Prison". The Markaz Review. Retrieved 2023-05-17.
  21. ^ "DC Rising Stars: Alka Pradhan, 38". National Law Journal. Retrieved 2023-05-17.
  22. ^ "International Criminal Court - Al Hassan Case".
  23. ^ "Public redacted version of "Article 69(7) Application"" (PDF).
  24. ^ "Public redacted version of "Defence Article 69(7) Reply"".
  25. ^ 김양순. ""복면들이 LA 길거리에서 납치"…관타나모 인권변호사가 증언하는 LA 사태". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2025-08-03.
  26. ^ Alka Pradhan - Shifting the mindset to end torture and coercion, retrieved 2023-05-17
  27. ^ "International Review of the Red Cross, "Establishing a Practical Test for the End of Non-International Armed Conflict". June 20, 2024.
  28. ^ "Penn Law Faculty: Alka Pradhan". www.law.upenn.edu. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  29. ^ "Who We Are". International Law Students Association. June 29, 2018. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  30. ^ "NCHR hosting the drafting group on the Universal Protocol on Investigative Interviewing - Norwegian Centre for Human Rights". www.jus.uio.no. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  31. ^ "Mendez Principles" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-07-07. Retrieved 2021-07-13.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alka_Pradhan&oldid=1303970760"