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Memo reveals Bush authorized torture

by Open-Publishing - Saturday 8 January 2005
12 comments

Edito Wars and conflicts International Prison USA

by Tim Wheeler

WASHINGTON During confirmation hearings on Alberto Gonzales nomination as Attorney General, senators should question him about a recently uncovered memo that George W. Bush ordered the torture of detainees at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and other military prisons around the world, several human rights groups suggested last month.

The groups, who joined in an ACLU Freedom of Information (FOIA) lawsuit, which won release of the memo and other incriminating documents, are describing it as the smoking gun implicating Bush in the torture scandal.

ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero released the memo Dec. 20 in New York. That document, a December 2003 FBI internal e-mail, suggests that Bush issued a secret Executive Order authorizing the use of extreme coercive measures in interrogation, including sleep deprivation, stress positions, attack dogs, and use of hoods to intimidate prisoners. The Geneva Convention Against Torture bans all of these practices.

These documents raise grave questions about where the blame for widespread detainee abuse ultimately rests, Romero said. Top government officials can no longer hide from public scrutiny by pointing the finger at a few low-ranking soldiers.

The human rights groups statement called on the Senate to scrutinize Gonzales, the White House Legal Counsel, on a Jan. 25, 2002, memo he wrote to Bush arguing that the Geneva Conventions outlawing torture did not apply to the war in Afghanistan. Gonzales described the conventions as quaint and obsolete.

In August 2002, Gonzales, without consulting military and State Department experts in the laws of torture and war, according to the Washington Post, approved a memo from the Justice Department claiming that unlawful enemy combatants could be detained indefinitely without criminal charges or the right of due process. The memo, the Post said, gave CIA interrogators the legal blessings they sought.

Physicians for Human Rights, winner of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize, is one of the groups in the ACLU lawsuit. PHR sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee signed by 150 doctors with expertise in the treatment of torture. There should be no place in the U.S. government for any official who condones the crime of torture, the letter stated.

Gretchen Borchelt, a PHR spokesperson, joined in the call for probing Bushs role in the torture scandal. It would be great to question Gonzales about that memo, she said. There are a number of documents the senators have asked for and have not received yet. We think this is a hugely important issue not just because of the nomination of Gonzales but also because the questions about torture have not been resolved. There has been no accountability.

Gonzales asserted Bushs right to order the torture of detainees, a position that violates U.S. treaty obligations under the Convention Against Torture and other international agreements, PHR said.

Wilson Woody Powell, executive director of St. Louis-based Veterans For Peace, another group in the lawsuit, told the World in a telephone interview that they are now examining the documents, which they recently received.

Since Gonzales was Bushs legal adviser at the time, it would make sense to ask him about that memo, Powell said. It would be a good question: what was Bushs role in the torture?

If our nations highest law enforcement officer is known for abrogating international law in the treatment of detainees, we are just confirming to the world that we dont care about human rights. We would be confirming a criminal, a scofflaw, to be the nations chief prosecutor.

Powell pointed out that the U.S. is a signatory to the Convention Against Torture as a matter of self-protection. I fully anticipate someone is going to capture some American soldiers and do unto them what we have done unto others. We have a deep concern for how our soldiers are going to be treated if they are captured given the record of torture at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and other detention centers, Powell said. Thousands of detainees have been held without trial because the administration lacks evidence to try them or even bring criminal charges.

MoveOn.org, the Internet activist group, has posted a petition on its website demanding that Gonzales sign a Declaration Against Torture and renounce his extreme and dangerous position that torture is a legitimate method of interrogation. The petition calls on Gonzales to reaffirm American respect for human dignity and the rule of law.

The administration is feeling so much heat on the subject that they posted, unannounced, on a U.S. government website, a new policy repudiating the earlier memos and calling torture abhorrent both to American law and values and to international norms.

On the eve of his confirmation hearings, Gonzales appeared to be covering his previous actions by releasing a prepared statement saying he would abide by international treaties prohibiting torture of prisoners. His Senate testimony was obtained by The Associated Press.

greenerpastures21212@yahoo.com

http://www.pww.org/article/articlev...

Forum posts

  • This is such a strange line of comments. Either the United States codones torture and should withdraw from the Geneva convention, or they don’t support torture. It appears this memo indicates Bush supports torture. Therefore he should withdrawl from the Geneva convention and make it clear he personally believes in torturing people. It completely violates the United States judicial process and the presumption of innocent until proven guilty. Maybe bush can be successful in continuing to break down the liberties in the untied states and police can start torturing suspects to get them to confess to whatever he wants (oh wait, that was stopped because you can eventually torture almost anyone to confessing to anythign whether they are guilt or not). The United States should be saddened and embarrassed by the actions of the president. Hopefully the world will hold him accountable since the citizens of the united states fear his retribution...the news media will not cover the attrocities, the lawmakers are affraid to stand up to him and his cabinet and the CIA have been told to either support his policies (no matter how corrupt) or get out. Given how many people have died as a result of bush, maybe him and Hussain are more similar than different. Both dictators that silence those who do not support him and will distroy their enemys (but first torture them).

  • Did Gonzales perjure himself during the Confirmation Hearings?

    SEN. LEAHY: So it is your testimony the president has (besides that of Feb 7, 2002) issued no other directive regarding the treatment of detainees? That’s not a trick question. I want to make sure you understand it very clearly because you are under oath. My question is meant to include a directive in any form to any government personnel regarding any category of detainee from any theater of operations and regarding any aspect of detainee treatment, including interrogation.

    MR. GONZALES: Senator, I don’t have any firsthand knowledge about the president giving directions regarding, say, specific techniques. That would not, in my judgment—as in the Schlesinger report, he concluded it would be sort of out of the question to expect the president would be involved in making individual—

    SEN. LEAHY: I’m just going by your formal—I mean your statement publicly that this was the only formal written directive for the president regarding treatment of detainees.

    Do you have any firsthand or secondhand knowledge of any other directive?

    MR. GONZALES: Sir, other than the directive by the president that we’re not going to engage in torture and that we’re going to abide by our legal obligations, I’m not aware of any other directive by the president.

    Well, he’d have to be aware of any other presidential directive, as he would be the one writing it! As President’s counsel, his request for the Bybee memo was for some purpose other than his own interest in the legality of interrogation techniques — it was to develop executive policy on the treatment of detainees.

    • CHRIS Matthews of MSNBC asked the other day this question to a member of the White House Legal counsel office, "If you weren’t going to use torture, why did you need a memo or opinion regarding it." What would be the point if no torture would be used. How hard is it to draw that line, no torture, torture. I think I can answer the difference of torture, no torture, it would be anything that infringed on human rights and dignity in any way, regardless of my country or status and for any reason, period. Isn’t this the definition.

      By the way, she answered in the same kind of garbeled way that Gonzales did, well we just wantedt to define it. And then they defined it as anything short of imminent death or organ failure.
      What is wrong with these judgements!!!!!! A child could understand.

      I have lost faith in the Democrat party that they will even stand up and deny Gonzales this job, we are going to have a yes man in the Attorney Generals office, who has condoned torture merely by asking the question, how far can we go and then presenting said memo to President, DOD., etc. They thought they had a go. Inicidentally in my opinion Bush doesn’t want to be in the World Criminal Court because he knows he would be brought up in charges at some point.

  • Yeah, just like I felt tortured reading the comments on this article because so many people are stupid.

  • Send this info to the ICC as further justification for a war crimes tribunal. It’s clear that the Bush admin is an out of control government. Call on the international community to hold them accountable, our Congress is obviously not going to do it.

    Po Box 19519
    2500 CM, The Hague
    The Netherlands

    Tel: + 31 (0)70 515 8515
    Fax: +31 (0)70 515 8555

    pio@icc-cpi.int

    http://www.icc-cpi.int/about/ICC_contact.html

  • I agree with the comment that states people are stupid. Rather than actually exploring the fundamental facts before making a decision, people rave like loons. Rather than actually approaching the situation of torture from the position of asking whether it is effective or not, they automatically assume it is effective and merely throw out a comment about Saddam using it, effectively displacing all blame onto someone else. Thus, they can retain the right of saying they are better than everyone else.

    What childish crap.

    In effect no one is better than anyone else. We are all equal as Human beings. What needs to be addressed is how we approach other civilizations. If we follow the argument of some people who state that because Sadam did it, it is all right to commit torture as well, then we are indeed acting like children. How many of you tell your kids that if another person cheats then your child should do so as well, to equalize the playing field? I doubt if very many of you do. Additionally, if all of you believe our country is so great then maybe each of you should act like it: you should hold yourselves to a higher moral compass than your peers and not automatically assume that you are morally justified in action, thought and deed. For in mandating torture you are as guilty as if you did it yourself. In relation, if you don’t have the guts to do it yourself then you’re a hypocrite; And if you do indeed want to commit torturous acts then I feel sorry for you and recommend some psychiatric help.

    Regarding the election, I hate to admit that none of the elections as far back as 40 years have been completely fair. What is new is that the sophistication of the equipment is that much greater. They can be hacked just like PC’s because they are PC’s. With two Republican companies controlling 80% of the machines there is little chance in the next few years for any Democrat who isn’t strongly supported of getting elected. As evidence, just investigate Chuck Hegel and how he got elected shortly after he quit as CEO of one of these companies. Moreover one of the CEO’s of these companies actually recently stated in an internal memo that he would do everything in his power to bring in the votes for George W. Bush. These facts are just the tips of the iceberg. Look into the vote for yourself if you want someone other than an emperor in office.

    In terms of Alberto Gonzalez, there have been numerous instances in history of tortures and torturing. In the same vein I am seeing too many parallels between the ancient Romans and us for my own liking: in Suetonius there were numerous emperors that enjoyed torturing and I wouldn’t put it past Bush to be just like them. Bush has made every attempt to suffuse religion into the office of president and Gonzalez is just a puppet representing an internal ideology that Bush himself holds: he believes that he will enlighten the heathens. As such torture is a exercise which supports his existence. It must really firm up the infant in Bush when he sees a signed confession from on of these prisoners in Guantanamo. And who knows maybe some of these animals have converted to Christianity. He is a child existing in a man’s body and heaven help us, he is our president. What is even more unfortunate is that there are many in the U.S. who are just like him, idiots.

    • I say amen to the previous post, you said it so much better than I.
      I am just so amazed that this is even a discussion, what have we as a people become???

    • Education is a wonderful thing. It allows you to analyze a persons argument and evoke and effective response, showing them just how hypocritical they are.

  • This American board of dictatorship just needs another willful dog. Rumsfeld, Rice or Gonzales...
    It is the American people who should overthrow this regime.

    • Bush got his jollys putting 154 people to death in Texas, you can imagine how he was creaming his jeans when the idea of torturing the Iraqis came up, I wouldn’t doubt it is he has his own set of videos (the ones we were not allowed to see because they were too nasty) to screw Barbara too....he is nothing more than a perverted bastard anyway.

  • George W. Bush should change the "W" into an "M". The "M" stands for murder. That suits his
    mindset and acting.