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08 October 2004 Torture Is Not Acceptable Under Any Circumstances, U.S. SaysAmb. Larry Napper addresses OSCE human rights meeting in Warsaw The United States will not compromise its commitment to human rights and rule of law in order to fight the war against terrorism, the head of the U.S. delegation to a human rights conference promised October 7. "Torture is not acceptable under any circumstances," Ambassador Larry Napper told the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw, Poland. "The United States complies with all of its legal obligations in its treatment of detainees, and in particular with legal obligations prohibiting torture," Napper said, adding, "The United States does not permit, tolerate or condone torture by its employees under any circumstances." He noted that the deputy assistant secretary of defense for detainee affairs, Matthew Waxman, spoke October 5 specifically about the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and the steps the United States is taking to ensure detainees are treated humanely and in accordance with U.S. obligations under international law. The text of his remarks is available at: http://www.usosce.rpo.at/HDIM/hdim2004.html Napper also briefly described U.S. efforts to help Uzbekistan take actions recommended by the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture. The October 4-15 meeting in Warsaw is being held to review the implementation of OSCE commitments in the fields of human rights and democracy -- the "human dimension" -- by participating states. Following is the text of Ambassador Napper's statement: (begin text) United States Mission to the OSCE STATEMENT ON TORTURE As delivered by Ambassador Larry Napper, Head of Delegation Mr. Moderator, the United States does not compromise its commitment to human rights in accordance with the law, even now, when we are engaged in a war against a ruthless and unprincipled foe in the War on Terrorism. The United States complies with all of its legal obligations in its treatment of detainees, and in particular with legal obligations prohibiting torture. The United States does not permit, tolerate or condone torture by its employees under any circumstances. It is our position that no circumstances whatsoever, including war, the threat of war, internal political instability public emergency, or an order from a superior officer or public authority, may be invoked as a justification or defense to commit torture. We cannot stress our position clearly enough: torture is not acceptable under any circumstances. For that reason, we supported fully the important work conducted at last year's Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting devoted to the Prevention of Torture. Together, we focused on developing the procedural framework and the means to prevent, as well as hold accountable, those who would commit acts of torture. The United States is committed to this framework and we believe the meeting provided valuable recommendations to Participating States and the OSCE institutions. The first general recommendation was that "officials at the highest levels of government should issue and widely publicize a clear, unequivocal condemnation of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment." Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to note that our President did so. We will circulate a full copy of President Bush's statement from June 26, issued in commemoration of the United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. Mr. Moderator, over the past year, the United States Government addressed abuses of detainees in Iraq. These abuses were contrary to U.S. law and policy. We have taken steps to investigate and hold accountable those responsible for committing these egregious acts. Mr. Matt Waxman, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Office of Detainee Affairs spoke in the October 5 side panel about Abu Ghraib, the steps that we are taking to ensure detainees are treated humanely and in accordance with our obligations under international law. Mr. Moderator, unfortunately human rights abuses persist in many places around the world. When we become aware of possible abuse, we investigate and hold perpetrators accountable. All OSCE Participating States must work towards ensuring that we have proper procedural safeguards in place to prevent torture, holding accountable those who may violate the law. Thank you. (end text) (Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov) |
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