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Truth, Justice, and the Un-American Way

This article tells the story of Maher Arar, a joint Canadian-Syrian citizen who was detained at New York's JFK Airport in 2002 and "rendered" to Syria, a country the United States State Department accuses of routinely using torture. Syrian intelligence agents brutally tortured Arar - a fact confirmed by a Canadian inquiry - before releasing him nearly a year later without charging him. (John Cavanagh, Christian Science Monitor, 5 December 2006)

http://www.commondreams.org/views06/1205-33.htm

(Added: Thu Dec 07 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 64)

UN body urges US to shut Guantanamo, "secret jails"

The United Nations top anti-torture body told the United States on Friday that any secret jails it ran for foreign terrorism suspects, along with the Guantanamo Bay facility, were illegal and should be closed. In its first review of U.S. policy since Washington launched its war on terrorism, the Committee against Torture also urged President George W. Bush to ban interrogation methods that could be regarded as torture or cruel treatment. It cited use of dogs to terrify detainees, "water-boarding" which is a form of mock drowning, and sexual humiliation, saying that some detainees had died during questioning. The U.S. State Department rejected the recommendations to close detention facilities as being beyond the committee's anti-torture mandate. (Stephanie Nebehay, Reuter, 19 May 2006)

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article13107.htm

(Added: Mon May 22 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 69)

United States "Unsigning" Treaty on War Crimes Court

(New York, May 6, 2002) The Bush Administration's decision to effectively withdraw the U.S. signature from the treaty establishing the International Criminal Court is an empty gesture that will further estrange Washington from its closest allies, Human Rights Watch said today.

http://www.hrw.org/press/2002/05/icc0506.htm

(Added: Thu May 09 2002   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 122)

USA: Excessive and lethal force? Amnesty International's concerns about deaths and ill-treatment involving police use of tasers

The use of stun gun (electro-shock) technology in law enforcement raises a number of concerns for the protection of human rights. Portable and easy to use, with the capacity to inflict severe pain at the push of a button without leaving substantial marks, electro-shock weapons are particularly open to abuse by unscrupulous officials. Taser use violates international standards prohibiting torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment as well as standards set out under the United Nations (UN) Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials. More than 200 people have died after being shot by a taser. The testimonies in this report serve as a warning for Aotearoa New Zealand, which is set to introduce the taser for police use in September 2006. (Amnesty International, August 2006)

http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engamr511392004

(Added: Wed Aug 16 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 219)

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