Blog
Published on December 13, 2007
The following is a statement by Human Rights First Washington Office Director Elisa Massimino:
“Today, the House took an important step toward reining in the wink-and-nod policy of torture that has undermined U.S. intelligence capabilities and damaged the reputation of this nation. Applying the Army Field Manual to the CIA and its contractors will ensure that the United States no longer permits the use of interrogation methods that it would condemn if inflicted by the enemy against captured Americans. And CIA officials will no longer be able to say they don’t torture while back at headquarters their colleagues are destroying tapes of their agents actually torturing prisoners.”
“The world no longer knows what the United States means when it says ‘we do not torture’ and ‘we treat prisoners humanely’ because this administration’s policies have drained those words of their meaning. That is a dangerous situation for our troops, and it has had a devastating impact on U.S. moral authority and standing in the world. It is now up to the Senate to pass this important legislation and ensure that interrogators – civilian and military – have the clear guidance they need to perform their critical duties in accordance with U.S. law and American values.”
Letter from 31 Retired Military Leaders
Letter from HRF to Congress
