'YES ICON! (ALTHOUGH ON REFLECTION, NO WE CAN'T …)'

[Guardian Unlimited, U.K.]

 

 

Corriere della Sera, Italy

Obama's 'Difficult and Courageous' Action on Torture

 

"The CIA memos encapsulate a brutal synthesis of the harshest years of the struggle against terror. ... Obama has taken dual responsibility: to reveal a vital fragment of the truth while demanding that cutthroats can be stopped by and within the law. Every day, however, this sacred principle will be severely tested - by reality and by criminals who have yet to lay down their arms."

 

By Guido Olimpio

                                

 

Translated By Enrico del Sero

 

April 19, 2009

 

Italy - Corriere della Sera - Original Article (Italian)

Former Vice President Dick Cheney: His comments on the propriety of 'harsh interrogation techniques' have ignited an international debate on the decisions of both past and present U,S, administrations.   BBC NEWS AUDIO: North America editor Justin Webb explains why former Vice President Cheney has called for the release of further documents explaining where results have been achieved by using such techniques, Apr. 21, 00:04:32

The CIA memos encapsulate a brutal synthesis of the harshest years of the struggle against terror. A short torture manual written by security bureaucrats. A brief document that casts light on the "dark side" of the war against al-Qaeda. Clandestine operations, human rights violations, abductions and secret prisons. Illegal behavior - sometimes unorthodox - that the George Bush White House made "legal" by internal decree. What strikes one is the care with which the four administration experts prescribed the methods to apply in confronting the terrorists. Tables, schedules, the measure of pain to apply, the degree of force to use. Antiseptic parameters that have become unacceptable violence.

 

The memos, still, offer us a glimpse into how a democracy - and it certainly isn't the first time - can lower its moral standards in the interest of protecting itself from an enemy assassin by any means. Because, as one expert pointed out, "between a citizen and a terrorist, the latter has the fewest rights." At the same time, one must recall the context. These systems were conceived of after an unprecedented terrorist attack. Today, it's easy to say that Osama's followers aren't so frightening and that perhaps the danger was exaggerated or manipulated. Back then, the majority of the international community was convinced of the need to react and was ready to compromise to protect itself. Of course, this shouldn't be interpreted as either an excuse or justification. But to say nothing of it would be dishonest.  

Posted by WORLDMEETS.US

 

But the publication of these confidential CIA memos holds another meaning for the United States: it is the power of transparency. It has the capacity to confront - only sometimes, to be sure - inconvenient truths. Not every country can bring itself to disclose such confidential and embarrassing material that creates controversy in the country and provides ammunition to its many adversaries.

 

To cynics, this is just a facade for concealing many other secrets that remain locked in a safe. To U.S. conservatives, this is a sensational mistake that puts at risk officials who took action to protect America. To former intelligence agents, it has the potential of compromising the fight against extremists and reveals a sign of weakness: they, the bad ones, will think we no longer have "the stomach." To liberals, on the contrary, this is even too little: they seek a board of inquiry.

 

Such heated debate shows Obama's decision to be a difficult and courageous one. He has taken dual responsibility: to reveal a vital fragment of the truth while demanding that cutthroats can be stopped by and within the law. Every day, however, this sacred principle will be severely tested - by reality and by criminals who have yet to lay down their arms.

 

SEE ALSO ON THIS:

Publico, Spain: Torture Charges Filed Against Bush Legal Team; Judge Garzon Handles Case

Hurriyet, Turkey: Dick Cheney's Torture Logic is 'Deeply Offensive'

Die Tageszeitung, Germany: America and Torture: 'Just Following Orders'

Financial Times Deutschland, Germany: Obama: Inviting the Next Torture Scandal

Jornal de Noticias, Portugal: Poverty and Torture: Bush Has Company in Europe

Le Figaro, France: Obama's Moral Crusade: A Few Words of Caution

The Independent, U.K.: America Doesn't Need a Witch-Hunt

BBC News, U.K.: U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture Calls CIA Exemption 'Illegal'

Ottawa Citizen, Canada: Torture the 'Chicago Way'

Toronto Star, Canada: Winking at CIA Abuse

 

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[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US April 25, 6:59pm]