Unrepentent,
Bush Denies Torture
By Marjorie Cohn
09 October, 2007
Marjoriecohn.com
The
April 2004 publication of grotesque photographs of naked Iraqis piled
on top of each other, forced to masturbate, and led around on leashes
like dogs, sent shock waves around the world. George W. Bush declared,
“I shared a deep disgust that those prisoners were treated the
way they were treated.” Yet less than a year later, his Justice
Department issued a secret opinion endorsing the harshest techniques
the CIA has ever used, according to an October 4, 2007 report in the
New York Times. These include head slapping, frigid temperatures, and
water boarding, in which the subject is made to feel he is drowning.
Water boarding is widely considered a torture technique. Once again,
Bush is compelled to issue a denial. He insists, “This government
does not torture people."
This was not the first time
the Bush administration had officially endorsed torture, however. John
Yoo, writing for the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel,
penned an August 2002 memorandum that rewrote the legal definition of
torture to require the equivalent of organ failure. This memo violated
the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment, a treaty the United States ratified, and therefore
part of U.S. law under the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution.
In December 2002, former
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld approved interrogation methods
that included the use of dogs, hooding, stress positions, isolation
for up to 30 days, 20-hour interrogations, deprivation of light and
sound, and water boarding. U.S. Navy General Counsel Alberto Mora told
William Haynes, the Pentagon’s general counsel, that Rumsfeld’s
“authorized interrogation techniques could rise to the level of
torture.” As a result, Rumsfeld rescinded some methods but reserved
the right to approve others, including water boarding, on a case-by-case
basis.
When Bush maintained earlier
this week that his government doesn’t torture prisoners, he stressed
the need for interrogation to “protect the American people.”
Notwithstanding the myth perpetuated by shows like “24,”
however, torture doesn’t work. Experts agree that people who are
tortured will say anything to make the torture stop.
One of the first victims
of the Bush administration’s 2002 torture policy was Abu Zubaydah,
whom they called “chief of operations” for al Qaeda and
bin Laden’s “number three man.” He was repeatedly
tortured at the secret CIA “black sites.” They water boarded
him, withheld his medication, threatened him with impending death, and
bombarded him with continuous deafening noise and harsh lights.
But Zubaydah wasn’t
a top al Qaeda leader. Dan Coleman, one of the FBI's leading experts
on al Qaeda, said of Zubaydah, "He knew very little about real
operations, or strategy … He was expendable, you know, the greeter
. . . Joe Louis in the lobby of Caeser's Palace, shaking hands."
Moreover, Zubaydah was schizophrenic; according to Coleman, “This
guy is insane, certifiable split personality.” Coleman's views
were echoed at the top levels of the CIA and were communicated to Bush
and Cheney. But Bush scolded CIA director George Tenet, saying, "I
said [Zubaydah] was important. You're not going to let me lose face
on this, are you?" Zubaydah's minor role in al Qaeda and his apparent
insanity were kept secret.
In response to the torture,
Zubaydah told his interrogators about myriad terrorist targets al Qaeda
had in its sights: the Brooklyn Bridge, the Statute of Liberty, shopping
malls, banks, supermarkets, water systems, nuclear plants, and apartment
buildings. Al Qaeda was close to building a crude nuclear bomb, Zubaydah
reported. None of this was corroborated but the Bush gang reacted to
each report zealously.
Likewise, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed,
considered the mastermind of the September 11 attacks, was tortured
so severely – including by water boarding – that the information
he provided is virtually worthless. A potentially rich source of intelligence
was lost as a result of the torture.
Bush’s insistence that
his administration doesn't torture rings hollow. He lied about weapons
of mass destruction and a Saddam-al Qaeda connection in Iraq. He lied
when he assured us his officials would not wiretap without warrants.
As evidence of secret memos detailing harsh interrogation policies continues
to emerge, we can't believe Bush's denials about torture.
Democrats in Congress have
demanded they be allowed to see the memos, but Bush said the interrogation
methods have been "fully disclosed to appropriate members of Congress."
Senator John D. Rockefeller IV was unmoved. "I'm tired of these
games," he said. "They can't say that Congress has been fully
briefed while refusing to turn over key documents used to justify the
legality of the program."
It is incumbent upon the
Senate Judiciary Committee to vigorously interrogate Michael Mukasey
during his attorney general confirmation hearing. As AG, Mukasey would
oversee the department that writes interrogation policy. Mukasey should
know the Convention Against Torture prohibits torture in all circumstances,
even in times of war.
Torture is a war crime. Those
who commit or order torture can be convicted under the U.S. War Crimes
Statute. Techniques that don't rise to the level of torture but constitute
cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment also violate U.S.
law. Congress should provide for the appointment of a special independent
counsel to fully investigate and prosecute all who are complicit in
the torture and mistreatment of prisoners in U.S. custody.
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