Cherie Booth: torture is terrorism of the state

[Briar]

Cherie Booth: torture is terrorism of the state

· Sideswipe at US over Abu Ghraib scandal
· PM's wife highlights vital role of courts

Richard Norton-Taylor

Cherie Booth yesterday denounced torture as "terrorism of the state" and
said the courts had a "vital democratic role" in holding governments to
account.

In a reference to terrorist suspects held at Belmarsh prison indefinitely
without trial until the courts intervened, she said the role of judges was
to be "guardians against executive overreach".

A leading human rights lawyer and QC, she noted that torture was banned by
domestic and international law.

Referring to Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, she pointed out that torture was
also banned by the US army manual and by the US code of military conduct.
Torture, she said, was violent, demeaning and dehumanising. Information
obtained by it was often unreliable.

...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/humanrights/story/0,,1721347,00.html

[Greeby]

1. Umm, care to have a word with the old man?

:shrug: