NEW YORK PEACE NETWORK Alert #165

Dear Peace Advocate,

On the eve of the U.N. Day in Remembrance of the Victims and Survivors of Torture, it is ironic that we are pondering the question of who initiated U.S. use of torture in the “war on terror.”

It is clear that the process was a top-down one. The administration decided in favor of brutal and inhumane techniques and imposed them, usually despite opposition from the ranks of professionals. The only question that remains, is who, within the administration, was responsible for those decisions.

As you may remember, in 2004 The Washington Post uncovered a “torture memo” proclaiming that torturing al Qaeda terrorists abroad would be justified, and therefore exempt from international laws against torture. The memo was prepared in 2002 after dozens of top-secret talks and meetings in the White House, in which the most senior Bush Administration officials discussed and approved specific details of how “high-value” Al Qaeda suspects would be interrogated by the Central Intelligence Agency. The so-called “Principals Committee”, which was an integral part of the discussions, included Vice President Cheney, former National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell, as well as CIA Director George Tenet and Attorney General John Ashcroft. In Senate hearings last week, it became clear that the General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Defense, William J. “Jim” Haynes, will be the “fall-guy” for the Principals Committee. It is an interesting coincidence that the same man was nominated by President Bush to be a judge in the 7th District Court.

It is indeed ironic that America should be found guilty in front of the world for the use of torture in the middle of Torture Awareness Month. It is time for us to start keeping our elected and appointed officials in check.

National security is not a mission in which the ends justify the means. Using torture has not made America safer. Instead, it has fueled anti-Americanism around the world, recruited new people into the ranks of terrorist organizations, and placed captured U.S. personnel at risk. Apart from undermining America ’s credibility abroad, torture has done its damage on the home front. It has diminished Americans' confidence and pride in our country, and our belief that America can contribute to a more humane world.

If the decision to start using torture in the war came from above, the push to end it must come from below. We, the people, must once and for all make it clear to the administration that America does not support inhumane practices. In your 5 minutes for peace this week, please call the Presidential candidates, as well as Senators Schumer and Clinton, and tell them that you are against the use of torture in every instance. Moreover, tell them that you demand prosecution of this crude misuse of power on the part of people holding top positions in the government.

Contact:

To demonstrate your commitment on the U.N. Day in Remembrance of the Victims and Survivors of Torture you can attend the Interfaith Press Conference in New York City, which will be followed by a procession to the U.N. Chapel for an Interfaith Prayer Service in Remembrance of the Victims and Survivors of Torture. The day will also be commemorated in Albany with a teach-in and demonstration called “Zero Tolerance for Torture.”

Thank you,

Stanislava Staneva
Peace Action Fund of New York State
info@panys.org