February, 07 2011, 10:02am EDT
CCR Announces Bush Indictment for Convention Against Torture Signatory States
No Immunity for Former Presidents Under Law
GENEVA and NEW YORK
Today, two torture victims were to have filed criminal complaints,
with more than 2,500-pages of supporting material, in Geneva against
former U.S. President George W. Bush, who was due to speak at an event
there on 12 February. Swiss law requires the presence of the torturer
on Swiss soil before a preliminary investigation can be opened. When
Bush cancelled his trip to avoid prosecution, the human rights groups
who prepared the complaints made it public and announced that the Bush
Torture Indictment would be waiting wherever he travels next. The
Indictment serves as the basis on which to prepare country-specific,
plaintiff-specific indictments, with additional evidence and updated
information. According to international law experts at the New
York-based Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and the Berlin-based
European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR), former
presidents do not enjoy special immunity under the Convention Against
Torture (CAT).
"Waterboarding is torture, and Bush has admitted, without any sign of remorse, that he approved its use," said Katherine Gallagher, Senior Staff Attorney at CCR and Vice President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). "The reach of the Convention Against Torture is wide - this
case is prepared and will be waiting for him wherever he travels
next. Torturers - even if they are former presidents of the United
States - must be held to account and prosecuted. Impunity for Bush must end."
While the U.S. has thus far failed to comply with its obligations
under the Convention Against Torture to prosecute and punish those who
commit torture, all other signatories, too, are obligated to prosecute
or extradite for prosecution anyone present in their territory they have
a reasonable basis for believing has committed torture. If the evidence
warrants, as the Bush Torture Indictment contends it does, and the U.S.
fails to request the extradition of Bush and others to face charges of
torture there, CAT signatories must, under law, prosecute them for
torture.
In a statement this weekend, the groups who organized the complaints
said, "Whatever Bush or his hosts say, we have no doubt he cancelled his
trip to avoid our case. The message from civil society is clear - If
you're a torturer, be careful in your travel plans."
The complaints that had been scheduled to be filed on Monday asked
that the General Prosecutor of the Canton of Geneva investigate
allegations that men were tortured as part of the Bush administration's
well-documented torture program. Bush proudly recounted in his recently
published memoir that when asked in 2002 to if it was permissible to
waterboard a detainee - a recognized act of torture - he replied "damn
right."
Monday, February 7, is the ninth anniversary of the day Bush decided the Geneva Conventions did not apply to 'enemy combatants.'
According to the Bush Indictment, which was written on behalf of
torture victims by CCR and ECCHR, former President Bush bears individual
and command responsibility for the acts of his subordinates which he
ordered, authorized, condoned or otherwise aided and abetted, as well as
for the violations committed by his subordinates which he failed to
prevent or punish.
"Bush is a torturer and deserves to be remembered as such," said Gavin Sullivan, Solicitor and Counterterrorism Program Manager, ECCHR.
"He bears ultimate responsibility for authorizing the torture of
thousands of individuals at places like Guantanamo and secret CIA 'black
sites' around the world. As all states are obliged to prosecute such
torturers, Bush has good reason to be very worried."
CCR, ECCHR and FIDH were joined by more than 60 human rights
organizations and prominent individuals who signed on to support the
call for George W. Bush's prosecution, including former UN Special
Rapporteur on Torture, Theo van Boven, former UN Special Rapporteur on
Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Leandro Despouy, and Nobel Peace
Prize recipients Shirin Ebadi and Perez Esquivel. A number of the human
rights organizations which signed on are facing the on-going harms of
the "counterterrorism" policies advanced under the Bush administration
and then adopted or employed in their own countries.. The complaint
included 2500 pages of supporting materials.
Manfred Nowak, former UN Special Rapporteur on Torture (2004-2010),
was to submit an expert opinion on the complaints concluding that the
conduct to which both plaintiffs were subjected constitutes torture,
that Switzerland had an obligation to open a preliminary investigation,
and that George W. Bush enjoys no immunity.
The Bush Torture Indictment, the official "letter of denunciation" summarizing the case and other materials are available here: https://ccrjustice.org/ourcases/current-cases/bush-torture-indictment.
The Center for Constitutional Rights, in addition to filing the first
cases representing men detained at Guantanamo, has filed universal
jurisdiction cases seeking accountability for torture by Bush
administration officials in Germany, France and submitted expert
opinions and other documentation to ongoing cases in Spain in
collaboration with ECCHR. The Center for Constitutional Rights is
dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the
United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. Founded in 1966 by attorneys who represented civil rights
movements in the South, CCR is a non-profit legal and educational
organization committed to the creative use of law as a positive force
for social change. Visit www.ccrjustice.org. Follow @theCCR.
The European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) is an
independent, non-profit legal organization that enforces human rights by
holding state and non-state actors to account for egregious abuses
through innovative strategic litigation. For more information visit www.ecchr.eu
The International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) is a
non-governmental federation for 164 human rights organizations. FIDH's
core mandate is to promote respect for all the rights set out in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights. Its priority areas include protecting human
rights defenders and fighting impunity. For more information on FIDH, see www.fidh.org.
The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. CCR is committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.
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Despite 100% Pentagon Audit Failure Rate, House Passes $883.7 Billion NDAA
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Despite the Pentagon's repeated failures to pass audits and various alarming policies, 81 Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives voted with 200 Republicans on Wednesday to advance a $883.7 billion annual defense package.
The Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025, unveiled by congressional negotiators this past Saturday, still needs approval from the Senate, which is expected to vote next week. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Wednesday that he plans to vote no and spoke out against the military-industrial complex.
The push to pass the NDAA comes as this congressional session winds down and after the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) announced last month that it had failed yet another audit—which several lawmakers highlighted after the Wednesday vote.
Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), co-chairs and co-founders of the Defense Spending Reduction Caucus, said in a joint statement, "Time and time again, Congress seems to be able to find the funds necessary to line the pockets of defense contractors while neglecting the problems everyday Americans face here at home."
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Several of the 124 House Democrats who voted against the NDAA cited those "culture war" policies, in addition to concerns about how the Pentagon spends massive amounts of money that could go toward improving lives across the country.
"Once again, Congress has passed a massive military authorization bill that prioritizes endless military spending over the critical needs of American families. This year's NDAA designates $900 billion for military spending," said Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), noting the audit failures. "While I recognize the long-overdue 14.5% raise for our lowest-ranking enlisted personnel is important, this bill remains flawed. The bloated military budget continues to take away crucial funding from programs that could help millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet."
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As Omar, a leading critic of the U.S.-backed Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, also pointed out: "The NDAA includes a provision that blocks the Pentagon from using data on casualties and deaths from the Gaza Ministry of Health or any sources relying on those statistics. This is an alarming erasure of the suffering of the Palestinian people, ignoring the human toll of ongoing violence."
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Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), who voted against the NDAA, directed attention to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), set to be run by billionaires Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
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"At a time when Hamas is feeling isolated due to the cease-fire in Lebanon, the draft resolution on a cease-fire in Gaza risks sending a dangerous message to Hamas that there's no need to negotiate or release the hostages," Robert Wood, the United States' deputy U.N. ambassador, said ahead of Wednesday's vote.
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The nine countries that opposed the measure are the United States, Israel, Argentina, Czechia, Hungary, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, and Tonga.
In a separate vote Wednesday, 159 UNGA members voted in favor of a resolution affirming the body's "full support" for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. UNRWA has been the target of diplomatic and financial attacks by Israel and its backers—who have baselessly accused the lifesaving organization of being a terrorist group—and literal attacks by Israeli forces, who have killed more than 250 of the agency's personnel.
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Aiming to confront "a root cause of many of America's fundamental economic problems," U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Wednesday unveiled a bill to require corporations to balance growth with fair treatment of their employees and consumers.
The Massachusetts Democrat introduced the Accountable Capitalism Act, explaining that for much of U.S. history, corporations reinvested more than half of their profits back into their companies, working in the interest of employees, customers, business partners, and shareholders.
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