Deploring Abuse of Persons in United States Custody in Iraq

DEPLORING ABUSE OF PERSONS IN UNITED STATES CUSTODY IN IRAQ -- (House of Representatives - May 06, 2004)

Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 628, I call up the resolution (H. Res. 627) deploring the abuse of persons in United States custody in Iraq, regardless of the circumstances of their detention, urging the Secretary of the Army to bring to swift justice any member of the Armed Forces who has violated the Uniform Code of Military Justice, expressing the deep appreciation of the Nation to the courageous and honorable members of the Armed Forces who have selflessly served, or are currently serving, in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration.

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Ms. DEGETTE. Mr. Speaker, while the recent reports and graphic photographs of the alleged prisoner abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison sound similar to the atrocities that occurred under the cruel dictatorship of Saddam Hussein, these unbelievable instances of brutality and inhumanity, instead, allegedly took place under American command, perpetrated by American troops. Sadly, the Abu Ghraib prison-the very prison that epitomized all that was evil under Saddam Hussein's regime to the Iraqi people-still represents evil, only under a new name.

Accordingly, Congress must send an unwavering message to the Iraqi people and to the rest of the world that the United States will not tolerate the alleged atrocities that have occurred in the Abu Ghraib prison. While I will vote for this resolution, I do not want to simply join my colleagues who want to pay lip-service to a solution without any subsequent action. Congress must ensure that the perpetrators of the alleged brutality, as well as those leaders who let such inhumanity occur under their watch, be brought to justice. Just as importantly, Congress must investigate the scope of this problem; the increasing number of revelations of alleged prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib and other prisons in Iraq, leads me to believe that such brutality may not be isolated to six or seven individuals. We need to ensure that such abuse is not systemic within and outside of the chain of command by conducting a bipartisan Congressional investigation and by holding Congressional hearings.

Additionally, we must make sure that all people who participated in this alleged abuse are held accountable. This includes the private contractors who were allegedly involved in the brutality that took place at Abu Ghraib. While the Department of Defense has reportedly launched several investigations, none has yet to address the role that the private contractors played. In fact, several reports indicate that the private contractors who were named specifically in the classified Taguba report are still working as paid contractors in Iraq. Not only must Congress hold hearings to investigate the alleged role of the private contractors in the alleged prison abuses, the U.S. Department of Justice must also exercise its ability to investigate, and if warranted, prosecute those individuals to the fullest extent of the law.

Congress must also guarantee that this Administration is held responsible for its actions or more precisely, its inaction, and for its policies that may have allowed such atrocities to occur. The actions of Secretary Rumsfeld and the Pentagon, including the decision that the United States would no longer adhere to the Geneva Convention as well as the ruling that detainees would be held without due process, have arguably helped to create a standard for the treatment of prisoners, which allows for humiliation, torture and murder.

Even worse, Mr. Rumsfeld has not only not read the Taguba report in its entirety, he has failed on numerous instances to respond to other reports of alleged violations and abuse. There is no excuse for his woeful negligence. If Mr. Rumsfeld had responded to these reports, these abuses may not have occurred to this degree, or at all. Mr. Rumsfeld must be held responsible for his part and if doing so requires his resignation, such action must then be called for.