NOW. Politics & Economy. Interrogation and the Question of Torture

Interrogation and the Question of Torture

More on This Story:

IN THE NEWS: U.S treatment of prisoners of war and terror suspects is in the news again. While at a conference for world leaders, President Bush responded to repeated questions about U.S. prisoner policy with a firm "We do not torture." Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice addressed similar questions by saying only that the US was in a "different kind of war" and had an obligation to defend itself. Questions about U.S. prisoner policy are at the forefront for two reasons. The administration was already in a battle with members of its own party over legislative attempts to prohibit torture when THE WASHINGTON POST published in an November 2, 2005 article alledging that the CIA is running unrestricted secret jails, or "black box" prisons, in several countries around the globe. The article, built upon insider information, estimated that "more than 100 suspected terrorists have been sent by the CIA into the covert system."

Coming on the heels of the indictments in the Valerie Plame case, the embattled CIA was quick to react. Both the agency and a number of Congressional Republicans are calling for an immediate investigation of the leak. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) wrote a letter to the chairmen of the House and Senate intelligence committees stating: "If accurate, such an egregious disclosure could have long-term and far-reaching damaging and dangerous consequences, and will imperil our efforts to protect the American people and our homeland from terrorist attacks." But others are calling for an investigation into the existence of the prisons themselves — including members of Congress and international groups like The Council of Europe.

Read the WASHINGTON POST article

These revalations come on top of a public fight between the administration and Republican Senator John McCain (and, Bill Frist) over attempts to write into two defense bills strict rules governing prisoner treatment. The amendment proposed by McCain would ban "cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment" of any person in U.S. custody, regardless of location or nationality.

The White House has proposed an exemption for the CIA from this ruling — a move strongly opposed by McCain, who was himself a prisoner of war in Vietnam. Other critics say that writing in the exemption would for the first time actually authorize interrogations which could be deemed abusive under national and international law.

On Friday, November 10, 2005 THE NEW YORK TIMES reported another twist in the battle:

The Senate voted Thursday to strip captured "enemy combatants" at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, of the principal legal tool given to them last year by the Supreme Court when it allowed them to challenge their detentions in United States courts.
The vote, 49 to 42, on an amendment to a military budget bill by Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, comes at a time of intense debate over the government's treatment of prisoners in American custody worldwide, and just days after the Senate passed a measure by Senator John McCain banning abusive treatment of them.

NOW reported on the Supreme Court case in question earlier this year. Read more about the case.

Meanwhile, the Department of Defense issued new guildlines prohibiting physical or mental torture of prisoners. The CIA is not covered by the DOD regulations. And, just this week The Supreme Court said it will hear an appeal from Osama bin Laden's former driver, held at Guantánamo Bay, on the constitutionality of detention and military tribunals for terrorist suspects.

NOW has been reporting on issues of civil liberties and national security for several years. Explore the issue in depth through the links below.

Should the CIA be exempted from torture regulations? Take a poll and then Speak Out on the NOW message boards

PRISONERS: NOW looks at secret memos detailing prisoner policy. See what the Supreme Court has had to say about U.S. policies at Guantanamo Bay. Read one prisoner's story.

SECRECY: Lawyer Scott Horton talks to NOW about the explosive torture memos broken by NEWSWEEK (read the memos too). The Center for Constitutional Rights' Ron Daniels about the memos and their fallout. Explore the recent controversy over the CIA leak and Iraq war intelligence.

LAWS: Explore the history of the Geneva Conventions. Where does America stand on international courts? An Eventful History: View a timeline of American civil liberties during wartime.