It’s an election year. His approval ratings are dropping. So it makes sens that Bush admits the CIA runs secret prisons: He says interrogations have thwarted attacks against U.S.. Now Bush is asking that Congress look into article 3 of the Geneva Convention and specifically define it stating that it is “vague and undefined.” What he is attempting to do is to get excused from violating international laws:
Nearing the fifth anniversary of Sept. 11, Bush pressed Congress to quickly pass administration-drafted legislation authorizing the use of military commissions for trials of terror suspects. Legislation is needed because the Supreme Court in June said the administration’s plan for trying detainees in military tribunals violated U.S. and international law.
Administration officials said they were concerned the ruling left U.S. personnel vulnerable to be prosecuted under the War Crimes Act because the language under the Geneva Conventions was so vague.
An administration-drafted legislation would authorize the defense secretary to convene a military commission with five members, plus a judge to preside. It would guarantee a detainee’s access to military counsel but eliminate other rights common in military and civilian courts. The bill would allow reliable hearsay and potentially coerced testimony to be used as evidence in court, as well as the submission of classified evidence “outside the presence of the accused.”
But some senators have drafted another idea:
Republican Sens. John Warner, John McCain and Lindsey Graham have drafted a rival proposal. Unlike the administration’s plan, the senators’ proposal would allow a defendant to access to all evidence used against them. The plan by Warner, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, also would prohibit coerced testimony.
Ironically,
Also on Wednesday, the Pentagon put out a new Army field manual that spells out appropriate conduct on issues including prisoner interrogation. The manual applies to all the armed services but not the CIA. It bans torture and degrading treatment of prisoners, for the first time specifically mentioning forced nakedness, hooding and other procedures that have become infamous during the war on terror.
Democracy Now! has, as its lead story today, an analysis of Bush’s speech.
Deanna Dee-Dee Taylor 