Philippe Sands: Obama Must Investigate Torture

[kpete]

Philippe Sands: Obama Must Investigate Torture
by Cullen Murphy
May 26, 2009, 11:25 AM


............

The Obama administration has yet to decide how it will proceed—if it proceeds at all—in investigating the use of torture during the Bush administration and in holding officials to account. What do you believe would be the best course of action?

There will have to be an investigation, and I have no doubt that eventually there will be an investigation. History shows that a country cannot just “move on” when matters of such gravity have occurred.

It is first and foremost necessary for the U.S. to get its own house in order, and I am certain that if it acts to do so, other countries and their judges will back off. There are various options: congressional inquiries, an independent commission, or a criminal investigation. Some way needs to be found to take the politics out of the issue, to the extent possible, and that suggests keeping Congress out of the process. I favor an independent commission, to get the facts out, whilst leaving the door open to criminal investigations.

President Obama is sending mixed signals; he is going to have to get off the fence at some point, the sooner the better. The issues are festering, they won’t go away, and if he isn’t careful this will end up dogging his entire first term. He risks going down the “do nothing” route, which would be the worst of all scenarios. He can’t please everyone, and on this issue if he triangulates in a Clintonesque way he will please no one and end up in even greater difficulty. He has taken some brave early decisions, and he should follow through on them. His task is not made any easier by the unhappy efforts of former Vice President Cheney—a self-admitted proponent of torture—to spread poison.

more at:
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/politics/2009/05/philippe-sands-obama-must-investigate-torture.html

[PDJane]

1. i wondered what Mr. Sands would have to say.......

Thank you for this.

[Solly Mack]

2. K&R

[Land Shark]

3. k&r nt

[HamdenRice]

4. Sands is generally supportive of the Obama administration's approach so far

He said that Obama is taking a very long term, strategic approach to getting to the bottom of this.

You can read his complete interview with Amy Goodman on the topic at DemocracyNow:

http://www.democracynow.org/2009/5/20/torture

PHILIPPE SANDS: Well, I think that there’s a big issue here. I mean, I’ve always thought that foreign investigations are not an end in themselves; they’re a means to an end, and it really must be for the United States to sort this out. I’ve testified on several occasions before House Judiciary and Senate Judiciary, and I’ve said on every occasion my deepest wish is for the United States to sort this out. That is only, I think, at an early stage of beginning to happen.

President Obama seems very torn. Does he want to be a rule-of-law guy? Does he want to be a move-on, realpolitik sort of guy? And he cuts and turns in different directions. I think he may be playing the long game. I think it is inevitable; there will have to be some sort of investigation in the United States.

...

PHILIPPE SANDS: Well, the evidence is one of the new documents that has emerged, which has had very little play here. It’s a chronology that is produced by the Intelligence Committee of the Senate in January of this year, detailing the circumstances in which the two torture memos, written by John Yoo, signed by Jay Bybee, were produced on the 1st of August, 2002. And that document was put out recently by Eric Holder, the Attorney General, who I think is very committed to getting to the root of what went wrong and what happened. And that document identifies two meetings that held in—were held in July 2002 and identifies by office, but not by name, the individuals who basically, it says, approved waterboarding at those meetings. And it included in the list of names Condoleezza Rice. That is pretty powerful evidence.

<more at the linke>

[bvar22]

9. The problem wth playing the "Long Game":

The ACLU has pointed out that the Statute of Limitations on some of the WORST abuses will expire this year.

http://www.aclu.org/pdfs/safefree/lettertoholder_independentprosecutor.pdf

In this case, Justice Delayed IS Justice Denied.
The longer the Obama Administration delays appointing an Independent Prosecutor, the more it looks like they are protecting Torturers and War Criminals.

[kentuck]

5. I think the President will come to understand that...

this is not going away. It will have to be addressed. It cannot be swept under the rug.

[ThomWV]

6. The President knows full well that as time passes so will the rage - the key is in how fast he acts

In this case justice delayed will certainly be justice denied. Who can doubt that solid evidence will disappear faster than the mist of memories as time goes on.

[Bandit]

8. Maybe for some it will but I am still enraged about Florida 2000

I will live in shame for my country the rest of my life if this isn't addressed.

[malaise]

7. K & R

There will have to be an investigation.

[bvar22]

10. An important line:

"Some way needs to be found to take the politics out of the issue, to the extent possible, and that suggests keeping Congress out of the process."

It is past time to appoint an Independent Prosecutor.
Anything done by Congress at this point is a waste of time.
Congress can NOT prosecute, and can ONLY hand the ball back to the White House.
There is NO DOUBT that serious crimes have been committed.
It is time for the Justice Department to ACT.

The longer the White House delays, the more it looks like they are protecting Torturers and War Criminals.