No punishment for CIA officers who tortured detainees - Obama
Published: 17 April, 2009, 13:08
TAGS: Politics, Human rights, Law
U.S president Barack Obama announced that CIA officials that used torture techniques during Bush's administration will not be prosecuted.
The U.S president and Attorney General Eric Holder announced that Bush-era CIA officials should not be held legally accountable for implementing harsh interrogation tactics against foreign detainees in the war on terror because the methods, which have been criticized as torture, were defined as legal at the time.
The statement comes after U.S. government released four memos where Bush-era lawyers gave CIA interrogators the go-ahead to "get tough" on detainees.
Human rights advocates argued that Obama should not have assured the CIA that officers who conducted interrogations would not be prosecuted if they used methods in the memos authorized by Bush lawyers. Obama disagreed, saying in a statement, “Nothing will be gained by spending our time and energy laying blame for the past.” At the same time, other human rights activists applauded Obama for releasing the memos that provide more material than what the community has already known.
The protection, however, would not extend to CIA officials who acted beyond the boundaries laid out by the Bush-era memos. Obama said he believes the content of these documents has to be disclosed. According to him, it is now time to understand what has happened and move on in a world where the US is not engaged in torturing detainees.
Methods in the memos include keeping detainees naked for long periods, depriving them of food, keeping them in a painful standing position for long periods, beating and kicking.
A 2002 memo argues that ‘waterboarding’, a type of simulated drowning, does not inflict severe pain or suffering. The memo also approves such techniques as putting a suspect into a box with insects, facial slaps and sleep deprivation.
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This is just a re-affirmation that the USA fully supports torture and that this American way will be supported directly by Obama. This is change we can all believe in 'short-change'. This should serve as a wake up call to anyone who thinks there is a 'reset' in relations. The only reset Obama's administration is contemplating, is a reset in world development, so that developing nations are reset to the stoneage and their resources are plundered. NATO partnership; are there any really naive enough to believe in that. Partners who agitate directly on your borders! Russia needs to start voicing concerns about torture and politcal prisoners in the USA and Europe, to support their freedoms and fundamental rights. Russia needs to start to lead on these issues, not sitting back all the time and politely listening.
Try to imagine what the american creep-leaders and their NATO puppets will be saying if Russia in Chechnia or China in Tibet will have done the same cruaulties as the USA are responsables of doing in Irak, Afghanistan and Pakistan. How much longer will Russian leaders keep on being so kind and so polite with those imperialists crooks. It does not seem that Obama is any different from his predecessors. We are just witnessing an hollywoodian super-production which could be called the Barnum-Obama-Circus-Show. In France, we are used to that kind of marketing-communication-comedy with our "artist" Sarkozy. Example: the opinions'pools being not good for our president's party UMP for the ; last week his "Pompadour" wife gave an interview to a news-paper called . Two women-journalists were with Carla when soudaintly "Chouchou" appeared to kiss his wife. The fun part of it is than a couple hours later, the scene was in all french homes, since our three main TV channels showed the scene which undoubtedly was premeditated. French or american politics are 24 hours a day well orchestrated spectacles. This does not fool me; it is why I always say: In all human relations, the main ingredient is sincerity. Pauvre France and Poor America ! Sorry Future Generations ! Sincerely. Jean-Claude Meslin