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Prepared by Bill Quigley -- counsel for Fr. Louis Vitale and Fr. Steve Kelly
Last revised 10.19.07 - Errors or corrections should be reported to Bill Quigley, Quigley@loyno.edu
SECTION A: CHANGING DEFINITIONS OF TORTURE -- 4 Documents
(1) Rumsfeld Memo to Joint Chiefs, January 19, 2002
January 19, 2002 Memo from Secretary of Defense to Joint Chiefs of Staff.
This document outlines one of the definitions of torture used by the USA.
A January 19, 2002 Memo from Secretary Rumsfeld to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff stated: "The United States has determined that Al Qaeda and Taliban individuals under the control of the Department of Defense are not entitled to prisoner of war status for purposes of the Geneva Conventions of 1949."
AND, "shall treat them humanely and, to the extent appropriate and consistent with military necessity, in a manner consistent with the principles of the Geneva conventions of 1949."
This document outlines one of the definitions of torture used by the USA.
This is another highly controversial memo from the Justice Department, which concluded: "these treaties do not protect members of the al Qaeda organization ... we further conclude that the President has sufficient grounds to find these treaties do not protect members of the Taliban militia."
Another re-definition of torture.
Of all the evidence demonstrating the re-definition of torture post 9-11, none is more illustrative than the now famous "torture memo" of August 1, 2002.
On August 1, 2002, a memo was sent from Jay S. Bybee, Assistant Attorney General of the U.S., to Alberto Gonzales, Counsel to the President, reviewing the legality of the use of harsh techniques in the interrogation of prisoners outside of the U.S.
This memo, which should be read in its entirety by anyone concerned about what has happened to justice in the legal profession, stated:
PAGE 46:
"We conclude that Section 2340A [the Convention Against Torture] proscribes acts inflicting, and that are specifically intended to inflict, severe pain or suffering, whether mental or physical. Those acts must be of an extreme nature to rise to the level of torture with the meaning of Section 2340A and the Convention. We further conclude that certain acts may be cruel, inhuman, or degrading, but still do not produce pain and suffering with the requisite intensity to fall within Section 2340A's proscription against torture ... Physical pain amounting to torture must be equivalent in intensity to the pain accompanying serious physical injury, such as organ failure, impairment of bodily function or even death."
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld approves interrogation techniques for discretionary use at Guantánamo that include hooding, stripping, sensory deprivation, isolation, stress positions and the use of dogs to "induce stress". He rescinds this blanket approval six weeks later, stating that his authorization of such techniques should be sought on a case-by-case basis.
Lap dances by female interrogators -- page 7 teach /approve/ how could it have happened?
Rubbing perfume on detainee -- 7 teach/approve/how?
Female interrogators performance of acts taking advantage of their gender in dealing with muslim detainees? -- 7 T/A?
Females leaning over detainees, touching their leg and shoulder, running fingers through their hair, rubbing back? -- 7 T/A?
Female interrogator wiping menstrual blood on detainee - 8
Subject to loud music and strobe lights indefinite periods of time -- 8-9
Extremes heat and cold -- 9
Sleep deprivation -- moving inmates from cell to cell to disrupt sleep "frequent flyer cell movement program" -- 10
Sleep deprivation -- 16 hours of interrogation, four hour break, 16 hour interrogation -- for days? -- 10
Use of duct tape to shut up prisoners -- tape over beard and hair– 11
Short shackling prisoners to the floor -- chaining hands and feet closely to floor -- forcing detainees to crouch or lay sideways on floor -- 12
Using dogs in interrogations -- growl bark show teeth -- 14
Approve using "individual phobias" during interrogations? 14
Lap dances, females straddling male prisoners who were held down by MPs -- 16
Gender coercion as interrogation technique? 16
Calling inmates homosexuals, forced dancing with males? 19
Tie inmate with leash, led him around, forced to perform dog tricks? 19
Strip searches, standing naked with females present -- 19
Wear woman's bra on head? Put thong on head? - 19
Told mother and sisters were whores -- 19
Prevent people from praying -- 19
Squatting over Koran -- 19
Pouring water over head 17 times during winter -- 19
Cavity searches -- 19
Female interrogators remove their uniform tops, rubbed up against detainees, fondled genitalia, made lewd sexual comments, noises and gestures -- 22
Beatings -- 23
Threats against family members. Masked interrogator talked about chaining together family members and putting them into 6 X 6 X 4 foot hole, told him his family was incarcerated - 24
The Taguba Report, found between October 2003 and December 2003 "numerous incidents of sadistic, blatant, and wanton criminal abuses were inflicted on several detainees." General Taguba reported this abuse to be intentional and to include such acts as
[see page 16 of report] these acts people have confessed to:
punching, slapping, kicking detainees, jumping on their naked feet,
videotaping and photographing naked male and female detainees,
forcibly arranging detainees in various sexually explicit positions for photographing,
forcing detainees to remove their clothing and keeping them naked for several days at a time,
forcing naked male detainees to wear women's underwear,
forcing groups of male detainees to masturbate themselves while being photographed or videotaped,
arranging naked male detainees in a pile and then jumping on them,
positioning naked detainees on a MRE Box with a sandbag on his head and attaching wires to his fingers toes and penis to simulate electric torture,
writing "I am a Rapest" on the leg of a detainee alleged to have forcibly raped a 15-year-old fellow detainee and then photographing him naked,
placing a dog chain or strap around a detainees neck and having a female soldier pose for a picture,
a male MP guard having sex with a detainee,
using military working dogs without muzzles to intimidate and frighten detainees and in at least one case biting and severely injuring a detainee
and taking photographs of dead Iraqi detainees.
[page 17 -- find credible evidence to support these findings]
Detainees described additional abuses, such as military personnel
breaking chemical lights and pouring the phosphoric liquid on detainees,
threatening detainees with a charged 9mm pistol,
pouring cold water on naked detainees,
beating detainees with a broom handle and chair,
threatening male detainees with rape,
and sodomizing a detainee with a chemical light and perhaps a broomstick.
[page 18]
I find that ... military intelligence (MI) interrogators and other US Government Agency (OGA) interrogators actively requested that MP guards set physical and mental conditions for favorable interrogation of witnesses.
[page 18]
Sabrina Harman ... "MI wanted to get them to talk."
Sgt Davis.. [page 19] MI told cpl Granier to "do things, but nothing was ever in writing ... "
... the wing belongs to MI and it appeared the MI personnel approved of the abuse ... ."
Sgt Davis also stated he heard MI insinuate to the guards to abuse the inmates. MI said "Loosen this guy up for us. Make sure he has a bad night. Make sure he gets the treatment."
... MI giving compliments on the setting of conditions ... "Good job, they're breaking down real fast. They answer every question. They're giving out good information. Finally, and keep up the good work."
SPC Jason Kennel "MI would tell us to take away their mattresses, sheets and clothes."
Adele L. Nakhla -- witnessed some of the abuse in questioning about rape. "The detainees were all naked, a bunch of people from MI, the MP were there that night ... "
The Taguba Report additionally stated that previous detainee abuse had occurred in May 2003 at the Bucca Theater Internment Facility in Iraq.
Both Major Generals Anthony Jones and George Fay conducted investigations into the 205th Military Intelligence Brigade stationed at Abu Ghraib Prison, both reports find that abuse occurred, with the Jones Report stating that twenty seven military intelligence personnel allegedly requested, encouraged, condoned or solicited military police to abuse detainees or abused detainees themselves. Some of these violent or sexual abuses of detainees occurred during interrogations, such as the use of dogs, sleep deprivation, and isolation as interrogation techniques. The Fay Report gave detailed descriptions of 44 instances of detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib, such as military intelligence using sensory deprivation and isolation as an interrogation technique, interrogating a nude detainee, the unauthorized interrogation and alleged assault of a female detainee, an interrogator directing the partial removal of a detainees clothing and failing to report the incident, and military intelligence personnel directing the military police to place a detainee in solitary confinement, which the military police did after stripping and placing a hood on the detainee's head.
JONES REPORT
[page 11
– Major General Barbara Fast was tasked to do an initial assessment of the intelligence needed she was the head of MI at Fort Huachuca
[page 15 -- divides abuses into two categories.
Intentional violent or sexual abuses -- rape, sodomy and assault
[page 15-16] Causes were individual criminal misconduct -- soldiers knew they were violating approved techniques and procedures.
[page 16] second group of abuses -- incidents that resulted from misinterpretation of law or policy -
including -- clothing removal (without touching)
some use of dogs in interrogation (uses without physical contact or extreme fear) [then why do it -- is this believable?]
some instances of improper imposition of isolation
some of this conduct, in retrospect, violated international law
[page 16 -- section e (U) 1(U) "I find no organization or individual higher in the chain of command of the 205th MI brigade chain of command were involved directly or indirectly in the questionable activities regarding alleged detainee abuses at abu Ghraib.
[page 17 -- section (b)(U) Warning signs existed -- personnel on the staff knew of potential abuses and misconduct in violation of the Geneva Conventions at Abu Ghraib
section f (U) ... leadership failure, at the brigade level and below, was clearly a factor
then read the rest of the conclusions about failures and ask
2(U) responsibility was not done correctly and chain of command was mixed up
3(U) failure of discipline and learn from mistakes
4(U) failure to provide training
5(U) dysfunctional command between MI and MP
etc ...
FAY REPORT
PAGE 68 SUMMARY OF ABUSES
The Fay Report gave detailed descriptions of 44 instances of detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib, such as military intelligence using sensory deprivation and isolation as an interrogation technique, interrogating a nude detainee, the unauthorized interrogation and alleged assault of a female detainee, an interrogator directing the partial removal of a detainees clothing and failing to report the incident, and military intelligence personnel directing the military police to place a detainee in solitary confinement, which the military police did after stripping and placing a hood on the detainee's head.
[page 70, section c.(U) last line: "Neither the communities (MI and MP) knew what the other could do and not do."
Page 71 -- section (1)(U) Incident #1:
2 MI soldiers beat and kicked a passive, cuffed detainee ...
The MPs tried to stop the abuse but were backed off by MI who said "we are professionals, we know what we are doing."
All MI deny any abuses occurred
Page 72, incident #2
3 MI sexually assaulted a female detainee -- took her shirt off and forcibly kissed her
page 72, incident #3 detainees stripped, forced to simulate sex -- PFC England said "MI soliders instructed them (MPs) to rough them up."
(cont on page 73) ... (U) "Clear incident of direct MI personnel involvement in detainee abuse.."
PAGE 109
FINDING AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Found 27 Military Intelligence personnel ... Participated in abuse
The Schlesinger Report specifically stated that detainees were abused during interrogations and that there were five cases of detainee death as a result of interrogation abuses. The report starts with these two sentences:
Page 5
"The events of October through December 2003 on the night shift of Tier 1 at Abu Ghraib prison were acts of brutality and purposeless sadism. We know these abuses occurred at the hands of both military police and military intelligence personnel."
The Church Report found "[s]eventy-one substantiated cases of detainee abuse involving 121 victims and six deaths. Another 130 cases remained open as of Sept. 30, 2004. Guantanamo is the site of eight of the 71 substantiated and closed abuse cases. All incidents were relatively minor, although two involved sexually suggestive behavior by female interrogators. Afghanistan is the site of three of the 71 substantiated and closed abused cases. One of those three was a death. The other two were minor abuses. Iraq is the site of the remaining 60 cases. Five were deaths. Twenty-six were serious abuses. Twenty-nine were minor abuses."
Page 11 -- Section 3, Paragraph 24:
"The ill-treatment by the CF personnel during interrogation was not systematic, except with regard to those persons arrested in connection with suspected security offences or deemed to have an "intelligence" value."
(cont para):
"In these cases, persons deprived of their liberty supervised by the military intelligence were subjected to a variety of ill-treatments ranging from insults and humiliation to both physical and psychological coercion that in some cases might amount to torture in order to force them to cooperate with their interrogators.
page 12 -- section 3.1 methods of ill-treatment. ParaS 25 & 26.
PAGE 13, Middle of page at:
"The ICRC medical delegate examined persons deprived of their liberty ...
In 2005, Physicians for Human Rights found Iraqi detainees had been abused by U.S. military personnel in the use of military working dogs to instill fear, sensory deprivation, sleep deprivation, isolation, forced nudity, sexual humiliation, mock executions, and the threat of violence or death towards loved ones) and concluded that "there is strong evidence that psychological torture remains in use today."
Human Rights Watch and NYU Law School released a joint report in April 2006 describing the human rights abuses, torture and killing of detainees by U.S. military and civilian personnel.
page 6 BY THE NUMBERS
The DDA Project has to date documented at least 330 cases in which US military and civilian personnel are alleged to have abused detainees, ranging from beatings and assaults, to torture, sexual abuse and homicide.
At least 600 US personnel are implicated [read the rest]
At least 460 detainees have been subjected to abuse including people held in Iraq, Afghanistan and at Guantanamo Bay
Authorities opened investigations into about 65 percent of the cases
Their report documented " ... over 330 cases in which U.S. military and civilian personnel are credibly alleged to have abused or killed detainees. These cases involve more than 600 U.S. personnel and over 460 detainees. Allegations have come from U.S. facilities throughout Afghanistan, Iraq and at Guantánamo Bay ... . No U.S. military officer has been held accountable for criminal acts committed by subordinates under the doctrine of command responsibility. That doctrine provides that a superior is responsible for the criminal acts of subordinates if the superior knew or should have known that the crimes were being committed and failed to take steps to prevent them or to punish the perpetrators. Only three officers have been convicted by court-martial for detainee abuse; in all three instances, they were convicted for abuses in which they directly participated, not for their responsibility as commanders."