US: Ex-Detainees Describe Unreported CIA Torture

Gillian Redstone
Henrich
CST 473 4-5 B
23 September 2016
CIA Tortures Without Reason and Releases Without Compensation
Two Tunisian men,  Ridha al-Najjar, 51, and Lotfi al-Arabi El Gherissi, 52, were both held by the CIA for over 13 years when they were finally released with zero charges and zero compensation. Najjar was initially taken into custody in 2002 because he was identified as one of bin Laden’s security guards. After undergoing torture such as waterboarding, beating with a baton, and being hung from the ceiling by their wrists, both men are destitute and have significant issues in their lives due to the American torture the experienced. When HRW brought up the topic of these men’s torture to the CIA, a CIA spokesperson said that none of what was claimed actually ever occurred.


The reason why HRW is concerned about this problem is that it shows how little the public knows about the CIA’s torture program, and that the CIA really needs to put an end to it. HRW is also obviously concerned about this issue because Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 5 states, “No one shall be subjected to torture, or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment” (UDHR 49). The torture these men experienced is a clear violation of this human right. It’s also interesting to see that Americans working in the CIA feel it is okay to torture non-citizens when it is written in our very own Constitution that no citizen shall be subjected to cruel and unusual punishment. The men were also convicted without much reason and were let go without any charges, bringing into question the writ of habeas corpus. Tina Foster, executive director of the International Justice Network, had the same thought, and brought it to court. However, the district court decided that the men were beyond the jurisdiction of the US. The entire time she was fighting for these men, the US did not allow her to speak with or meet them.





Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 21, 2016 at 5:17 PM

    If the CIA won't admit these types of programs exist and the federal government prosecutes whistleblowers, what will it take to end this secrecy? Or is the secrecy a necessary evil? (Format - it's a blog, so no more MLA!)

    ReplyDelete

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