Torture Coming Back to the Forefront

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For whatever reason, the torture of prisoners by the US has slipped off the front page, but it has not gone away. In fact, it may soon be back on the front pages and the top of the news. Seymour Hersh has a 'Secret film shows Iraq prisoners sodomised'. He brought it up at a speech he gave at the ACLU convention (video) on July 14th.

While this new reporting on the events at Abu Ghraib hits the news, so do concerns that the US is hiding detainees, and ironically, that Congress's Inquiry Into Abuse of Iraqi Prisoners Bogs Down.

The removal of this scandal from the front pages has perhaps served the Bush campaign well, but it has not served the US well. The urgency of the early reporting was not simply sensationalism. It goes directly to the heart of global perceptions of the US - and to recruiting people into terrorist groups focused on the US.

The "disappearing" of the what exactly the policy is and where it came from is a disservice to all. The assumption that such activities have stopped may be foolhardy in light of the concerns raised by the Red Cross.

The way that the torture issue is being dealt with combines with other issues, such as no-bid contracting, the US pushing for total protections from war crimes charges, paints a picture of an imperial force operating with impunity. The perception that these activities are linked to greed are reinforced by the untracked funds (estimated in the billions of dollars) that have disappeared in Iraq. When the US not only closes off all transparency, and accountability, it raises eyebrows around the globe and should in the US as well. (Another "no show" is the US refusal to turn over audit to the UN)

It is my opinion, the citizens of the United States cannot simply step back and let the "process" run its course. The "process" is not working, and it places us all at risk. I am not calling for revolution. I am calling for citizens to visibly and vocally hold out elected representatives (and their appointed henchmen) accountable for their actions (or lack thereof). It is sad, but the people cannot afford to be seen as supporting the imperialistic actions and attitudes of our government. The world cannot, or will not, demand accountability. It is the citizens of the United States who must. It is also our responsibility to demand that the media do what it was intended to do in the US - provide reliable information and serve as a watchdog of democracy.

Links
7/16/04 Arthur, Independent/UK, 'Secret film shows Iraq prisoners sodomised'

7/14/04 ICH, Seymour Hersh : The US government has videotapes of boys being sodomized at Abu Ghraib prison.

7/16/04 Schmitt, NYT, Congress's Inquiry Into Abuse of Iraqi Prisoners Bogs Down

7/13/04 Koppel, AP, Red Cross Fears US Is Hiding Detainees

7/16/04 Lynch, Wa. Post, U.S. Won't Turn Over Data for Iraq Audits

Posted by rowan at July 16, 2004 09:30 AM | TrackBack | Printable Version | [eMail this article!] |