“W” Is Done But Folks Are In Hot Pursuit Of Justice. Wanted Posters For Torture Are Going Up Everywhere.
"The action I am taking is no more than a radical measure to hasten the explosion of truth and justice. I have but one passion: to enlighten those who have been kept in the dark, in the name of humanity which has suffered so much and is entitled to happiness. My fiery protest is simply the cry of my very soul. Let them dare, then, to bring me before a court of law and let the enquiry take place in broad daylight!"
- Emile Zola, J'accuse! (1898) –
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/taxonomy/term/129
A Visit with the UN's Torture Cop
http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,408472,00.html
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/video-and-audio/video-manfred-nowak-20080624
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In an interview on Tuesday evening with the German television program "Frontal 21," on channel ZDF Professor Manfred Nowak, the United Nations Rapporteur responsible for torture, stated that with George W. Bush's head of state immunity now terminated, the new government of Barack Obama was obligated by international law to commence a criminal investigation into Bush's torture practices.
"The evidence is sitting on the table," he stated. "There is no avoiding the fact that this was torture." He pointed to the U.S. undertakings under the Convention Against Torture in which the country committed that it would criminally prosecute anyone who tortured, or extradite the person to a state that would prosecute him. "The government of the United States is required to take all necessary steps to bring George W. Bush and Donald Rumsfeld before a court," Nowak said.
Manfred Nowak, an internationally renowned law professor at the University of Vienna, currently serves as an independent expert for the United Nations looking at allegations of torture affecting member states. In 2006, he undertook a special investigation of conditions at the U.S. detention facilities at Guantánamo in which he concluded that practices approved by the Bush Administration violated human rights norms, including the prohibition against torture.
The ZDF piece also includes an interview with attorney Wolfgang Kaleck, who brought charges against Rumsfeld before German prosecutors. He states that the Obama administration is "off to a good beginning" with its explicit renunciation of torture, but it still has not shown how it will hold Bush, Rumsfeld, and others to account for their crimes, nor has it demonstrated its legally obligated duty to provide compensation to torture victims.
Law professor Dietmar Herz clarifies that under U.S. and international law, George W. Bush bears personal responsibility for the introduction of torture. From the point of his departure from office, head of state immunity terminates, and under clear principles of international law, the United States is obligated to commence a criminal investigation and then a prosecution.
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OBAMA'S ORDERS ON GUANTANAMO AND TORTURE
George Washington's Blog: Now is the PERFECT Time to Prosecute ...
By George Washington
Now is the PERFECT Time to Prosecute Bush and Cheney. Quite a few people think that - now that they are out of office - it is too late to try Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Gonzales and the rest of the boys for their crimes. Even those who support prosecutions ... It is unlikely that a court would allow high-level officials such as a sitting president or vice president to be tried until they leave office after the end of their designated term or through impeachment and removal. ...
George Washington's Blog - http://georgewashington2.blogspot.com/
The Way Forward on Holding the Bush/Cheney Administration ...
This entry was posted on January 24, 2009 at 2:20 pm and is filed under Truth & Reconciliation Commission, activism, bush, cheney, constitution, political, politics, scoop. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 ...
IMPEACH THEM is now ARREST THEM! - http://impeachthem.wordpress.com/
Bush's legal foes, Obama's legal team - Ben Smith - Politico.com
Do I want prosecutions of Bush/Cheney? – No. Now, this will come as a major surprise to many. I wrote for months that I expected Bush to issue widespread pardons for his cabinet and members of his Whitehouse employees. I was wrong. ...
Politico Top Stories - http://www.politico.com/
Paul Abrams: Obama, Bush and the Unlearned Lesson of Watergate
Unfortunately, leaders like Pelosi took impeachment and other remedies off the table, immediately once in power, two years ago further eroding the only approval rating lower than Bush/Cheney " Congress. ...
The Blog - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/theblog/
Mission accomplished. « De Omnibus Disputandum.
Were every American truly equal under the law, Bush should have been impeached two years ago for violating federal statutes against domestic wiretapping and torture. Bush and Cheney might even have been handed over to the Hague for war ...
De Omnibus Disputandum. - http://mindserased.wordpress.com/
How the Press, the Pentagon, and Even Human Rights Groups Sold Us an Army Field Manual that (Still) Sanctions Torture
By Jeffrey S. Kaye, AlterNet
With the Army Field Manual likely to become the new standard for interrogation, the truth behind it is more crucial than ever. Read more »
Specter unsure after Holder meeting
Philadelphia Inquirer - Philadelphia,PA,USA
Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee have expressed concern that Holder might prosecute Bush administration officials for using harsh interrogation ...
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/world_us/20090123_Specter_unsure_after_Holder_meeting.html
Official: UN May Prosecute Bush Administration, Regardless Of US ...
Official: UN May Prosecute Bush Administration, Regardless Of US action + Michael Ratner: ProsecuteBush & Cheney. Posted on January 24, 2009 by dandelionsalad. Dandelion Salad. By David Edwards ICH January 23, 2009 “Rawstory” Jan 22, ...
Dandelion Salad - http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/
John Dean: Bush Could Have Issued 'Secret Pardons'
The Inauguration Beer Goggles Are Coming Off and Our Ugly Economic Problems Are Still Here
By Stephen Pizzo, News for Real
Progressives have been dry for so long that all that Obama bubbly went straight to our heads. But Obama or not, we're in for tough times.Read more »
The Sordid Story of 19 Hypocrite Senators Who Trust Our Money With Bush, But Not Obama
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