Catholic social justice organizations, including Pax Christi USA petitioned President Barack Obama on May 6 to support the formation of an independent commission to investigate the use of torture by U.S. interrogators on suspected terrorists. The petition followed the release of declassified Justice Department memoranda that outline the legal justifications for the so-called enhanced interrogation of detainees in the years following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The memos set the stage for the use of techniques deemed by human rights activists to be torture, including waterboarding, which causes the sensation of drowning, and exposure to extreme temperatures, sleep deprivation and physical violence. While commending Mr. Obama for his executive order banning torture and his order to close the prison at Guantenamo Bay, Cuba, the signatories argued that a commission would help expose "these horrific practices” and allow the nation to move toward reconciliation and healing.
Obama Asked to Back Torture Commission
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
A Reflection for the Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, by J.D. Long García
A Homily for the Third Sunday of Easter, by Terrance Klein
In a pre-conclave meeting, an Italian cardinal, and backer of Cardinal Parolin as next pope, attacked Pope Francis for opening positions of responsibility in the church to men and women not in holy orders.
As the film’s title promises, there is plenty of sin on display, even before the vampires arrive.