Detention and Humane Treatment of Captured Terrorists

CONGRESSIONAL RECORD
SENATE
Oct. 8, 2004

DETENTION AND HUMANE TREATMENT OF CAPTURED TERRORISTS

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I rise to speak about, section 514 of the National Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 which deals with the detention and humane treatment of captured terrorists.

Section 514 was added to the bill as a result of an amendment offered by Senator MCCAIN and Senator LIEBERMAN. I commend them for their leadership on this issue, which is so important to our country, and to our ability to fight an effective war on terrorism.

The 9/11 Commission correctly concluded that the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal has negatively affected our ability to combat the terrorist threat. The Commission wrote, "Allegations that the United States abused prisoners in its custody make it harder to build the diplomatic, political, and military alliances the government will need [to fight the war on terrorism]."

As a result, the Commission recommended, "The United States should engage its friends to develop a common coalition approach toward the detention and humane treatment of captured terrorists." In order to develop a coalition policy on the humane treatment of captured terrorists, the U.S. government must have its own policy that ensures the humane treatment of captured terrorists. That is what section 514 would require.

It will reaffirm a very important, long-standing position of our Nation: that the United States will not engage in torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. This is a standard that is embodied in the U.S. Constitution and in numerous international agreements which the United States has ratified.

Section 514 will require the Defense Secretary and the National Intelligence Director, NID, issue policies to ensure compliance with this standard and to provide these policies to Congress.

The Defense Secretary and the NID will also be required to report to Congress on any suspected violations of the prohibition on torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

Section 514 specifically provides that this information should be provided to Congress only in a manner and form that would protect national security.

Section 514 is very similar to an amendment that I offered to this year's Defense Authorization bill. My amendment, which was cosponsored by Senators MCCAIN, LEVIN, SPECTER, FEINSTEIN, LEAHY, and KENNEDY, was adopted by the Senate by a unanimous voice vote.

When I offered this amendment, it was supported by a broad coalition of organizations and individuals, including human rights organizations like Human Rights Watch, religious institutions like the Catholic Church and the Episcopal Church, and military officers.

Retired RADM John Hutson was the Judge Advocate General, the top lawyer in the Navy. In a letter in support of the amendment, he wrote:

It is absolutely necessary that the United States maintain the high ground in this area and that Congress take a firm stand on the issue. . . . It is critical that we remain steadfast in our absolute opposition to torture and [cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment].

Former Republican Congressman Pete Peterson, who was a POW in Vietnam for 6½ years, wrote in support of the amendment:

From my 6½ years of captivity in Vietnam, I know what life in a foreign prison is like. To a large degree, I credit the Geneva Conventions for my survival . . . This is one reason the United States has led the world in upholding treaties governing the status and care of enemy prisoners: because these standards also protect us . . . We need absolute clarity that America will continue to set the gold standard in the treatment of prisoners in wartime.

As we fight the war on terrorism, we must adhere to the ideals that made our country great. Torture is inconsistent with the principles of liberty and the rule of law that underpin our Constitution.

Any erosion in these standards would endanger American servicemen and women who might be captured by our adversaries. It would also create anti-American sentiment at a time when we need the support and assistance of other countries in the war on terrorism.

The U.S. Army fully recognizes these practical downsides. The Army Field Manual on Intelligence Interrogation states:

Revelation of use of torture by U.S. personnel will bring discredit upon the U.S. and its armed forces while undermining domestic and international support for the war effort. It may also place U.S. and allied personnel in enemy hands at a greater risk of abuse by their captors.

As the great American patriot Thomas Paine said: "He that would make his own liberty secure must guard even his enemy from oppression."