Torture

October 13, 2009 -- Congresswoman Louise M. Slaughter issued the following statement, after learning the House-Senate Conference Committee of the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill had added a provision exempting controversial detainee abuse photos from FOIA laws.

Last June, Rep. Slaughter led the effort to stop the White House and some members of Congress from passing a law that would make any detainee photos taken in recent years “exempt” from the Freedom of Information Act. But the measure had support in the Senate and was added in conference this week.

“I’m disappointed that this anti-Democratic provision would be added to the conference report late in the process, even after the House flatly rejected it,” Slaughter said.    » read more »

Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee Holds Hearing To Examine ‘Prolonged Detention’

WASHINGTON -- June 9, 2009 – A Senate Judiciary Committee panel Tuesday morning will consider the consequences of ‘prolonged detention’ of detainees held in U.S. custody. The Subcommittee on the Constitution, chaired by Senator Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), will hear testimony from a panel of six witnesses. Member statements, witness testimony, and a live webcast of the hearing are available online.

Full Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following statement at the hearing.

Statement Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.),

Chairman, Committee On The Judiciary,

Hearing On “The Legal, Moral, and National Security    » read more »

May 13, 2009 -- THE PRESIDENT: Hello, everybody. Sorry to keep you guys waiting. Good to see you. I want to take a few moments at the top to talk about something that, with all the big issues going on, hasn't received much attention, but I think is worth talking about briefly.

As some of you know, we have a humanitarian crisis that's taking place in Sri Lanka, and I've been increasingly saddened by the desperate news in recent days. Tens of thousands of innocent civilians are trapped between the warring government forces and the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka with no means of escape, little access to food, water, shelter and medicine. This has led to widespread suffering and the loss of hundreds if not thousands of lives.    » read more »

Human Rights Watch Researchers Saw Ibn Al-Sheikh Al-Libi in Late April

May 11, 2009 -- (New York) – The Libyan authorities should carry out a full and transparent investigation of the reported suicide of the Libyan prisoner Ali Mohamed al-Fakheri, also known as Ibn al-Sheikh al-Libi, Human Rights Watch said today.

Al-Libi, who was held in secret US and Egyptian detention from late 2001 to at least 2005, was found dead in his cell in Abu Salim prison in Tripoli. Human Rights Watch spoke with him briefly in the Tripoli prison on April 27, though he refused to be interviewed.    » read more »

March 11, 2009 -- WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the appointment of two individuals to lead interagency task forces established under separate Executive Orders issued on Jan. 22 calling for a review of the government’s interrogation and transfer policies, as well as a review of detention policy.

"These appointments reflect our commitment to develop sound options for handling detainees in the future as well as policies on interrogation and transfer that uphold American values and national security interests," said Attorney General Holder. "Having served in critical legal and national security positions over their careers, J. Douglas Wilson and Brad Wiegmann have the experience and judgment necessary to help us carry out these important tasks."    » read more »

Obama’s Executive Order Reverses Abusive Bush Counter-Terror Policies

January 22, 2009 -- (Washington, DC) - US President Barack Obama's executive order to end the use of torture sets a new course for US counterterrorism policy, Human Rights Watch said today. Obama's decision to issue this order within two days of becoming president signals the high priority the new president places on establishing legal and effective counterterrorism policies.    » read more »

Measure creates single uniform standard for all government interrogations, complies with U.S. law and international obligations

August 4, 2008 -- Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), John D. Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) have introduced legislation requiring the CIA to follow the Army Field Manual’s rules when conducting interrogations. The manual specifically prohibits the use of waterboarding and seven other coercive techniques.

The Restoring America’s Integrity Act would:    » read more »

John Ashcroft led DOJ when torture memos were penned; important questions remain on torture timeline and role of NSC principals

WASHINGTON, DC, 7/17/2008 – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) calls on former Attorney General John Ashcroft, in today’s House Judiciary hearing, to provide Congress and the American people with answers to questions about when, why and how the use of torture was authorized. Ashcroft presided over the Department of Justice (DOJ) during President Bush’s first term in office, when the legal rationale for using torture and abuse during interrogations of detainees held by the United States was first articulated in a series of legal memos.    » read more »

Part I of the Committee’s Inquiry into the Treatment of Detainees in U.S. Custody

June 17, 2008 -- Today’s hearing will focus on the origins of aggressive interrogation techniques used against detainees in U.S. custody. We have three panels of witnesses today and I want to thank them for their willingness to voluntarily appear before the Committee.

Intelligence saves lives. Knowing where an insurgent has buried an IED can keep a vehicle carrying Marines in Iraq from being blown up. Knowing that an al Qaeda associate visited an internet café in Kabul could be the key piece of information that unravels a terrorist plot targeting our embassy. Intelligence saves lives.    » read more »

May 20, 2008 -- “The Inspector General credits the FBI for maintaining a higher standard in the interrogation of detainees. In a majority of circumstances, agents at the FBI appear to have adhered to a clear policy in the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, and in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I still wish that Director Mueller had been more forthcoming when I asked him about these matters at our May 2004 hearing. Had he done so, he might have helped paved the way for Congress to investigate allegations of abuse sooner. The Republican majority refused to subpoena documents relating to the interrogation and treatment of detainees. The Bush administration has delayed four years in providing them. This remains a sorry chapter in our nation’s history.    » read more »

May 20, 2008 -- (Washington, DC) - Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) said he is seeking answers to questions raised in a report issued today by the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report entitled, "A Review of the FBI's Involvement in and Observations of Detainee Interrogations in Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan and Iraq." He released the following statement in response to the report’s release:    » read more »

20 May 2008 -- A U.S. Justice Department report says Federal Bureau of Investigation agents raised concerns about controversial interrogation techniques other U.S. agencies used on terror suspects.

The report, issued Tuesday, describes frequent clashes between the FBI and the military and Central Intelligence Agency over interrogation methods used in Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Guantanamo protest, Washington, D.C.: Photo by Keith Ivey (CC)

It says the FBI raised concerns about questionable tactics including the use of snarling dogs and forced nudity.    » read more »

May 7, 2008 -- Washington, DC - Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers issued a subpoena to David Addington, chief of staff to the vice president, compelling him to testify before the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties on June 26 at 10 a.m. Former Deputy Assistant Attorney General John C. Yoo, who has agreed to testify voluntarily, will testify on that day as well.

The subpoena and its cover letter are below:

David Addington subpoena - page 1

David Addington subpoena - page 2    » read more »

Subcommittee Authorizes Subpoena for Addington

May 6, 2008 -- (Washington, DC)- Today, the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties heard testimony from a panel of witnesses who agreed that there is no "ticking time bomb" that justifies harsh interrogation techniques that were approved in Bush Administration legal memos.

Protest sign, Washington, D.C.: Photo by Giovanni Variottinelli (CC)    » read more »

April 11, 2008 -- Washington, DC -- House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) today invited several current and former Administration officials to a May 6 hearing to explore the development and legal approval of Bush administration torture policies and other potential abuses of executive power.

John Ashcroft: Photo by World Economic Forum (CC)    » read more »