NEWSLETTER Volume 3, Issue 3
Preventing Torture Framing the Issue
May 2009
within the fight against terrorism Inside this issue: Does torture stop terror?
Does torture stop terror? Nope
Nope
1
by James Walsh, University of North Carolina at Charlotte A need for vigilance:
Torture is in the news. Bushera memos justifying the use of violence against detainees have just been released. The Bush people that wrote or acted on these memos justify such violence in the name of stopping terrorism. The claim is that the violence led the detainees to give up information that allowed the authorities to foil terrorist attacks in the planning stages. As many have pointed out in recent days, it's difficult to know with any certainty that
reasons. So the debate is stuck in a circle, with supporters of the methods claiming they worked, and opponents saying that they did not. One partial solution is to look at different types of data. In particular, do countries that practice torture heavily experience less terrorism? The answer is pretty clearly “no�. Here's how I arrived at this conclusion: My colleague Jim Piazza and I have a paper1 coming out in
Comparative Political Studies
Torture has a negative and statistically significant relationship to terrorism...in other words, countries that engage in more torture consistently experience more, not less, of both domestic and transnational terrorism.
this is the case. It's possible that the detainees would have given up the intelligence even if gentler techniques of questioning had been used (as professional interrogators for the FBI and other agencies have long claimed). It's also possible that the authorities would have found out about the impending attacks from other sources, or that the attacks would have been called off for any number of
that analyzes the influence of human rights abuses on terrorism. We find that, for a wide range of data sources, control variables and statistical specifications that governments that abuse rights actually experience more terrorism. But what about torture? Torture is only one of the broader range of human rights abuses we looked at in the paper. Is the relationship of torture to terror different? It
might be, since far more countries engage in torture than in other forms of violent human rights abuses. To answer this question, I reanalyzed the data from the paper. I re-estimated the three models described in the paper that use the MIPT [Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism] measure of terrorism2 as the dependent variable. This counts the number of terrorist attacks in each country from 1998 to 2004 committed by domestic and transnational groups, and also combines these into a measure of all terrorism. I used a negative binomial regression with robust standard errors clustered on countries and the same independent variables as those reported in the paper (political participation, constraints in the executive, regime durability, international war, civil war, and the logs of population and GDP per capita). I replaced the independent variable measuring human rights with two new variables. The first is a measure of torture from the CIRI project3. The second is the measure of human rights used in the paper minus
Kenyan media on terror-
2
ism and rights abuses
Recommended resources 3
torture. This is meant to capture the possibility that torture and other human rights abuses are substitutes for each other; a regime might not torture, say, but could still have a bad record of respecting other rights. Torture has a negative and statistically significant relationship to terrorism in all three models. In other words, countries that engage in more torture (and thus have a lower score on the torture variable) consistently experience more, not less, of both domestic and transnational terrorism. This mirrors the more general finding reported in the paper that respect for human rights is associated with less terror as well. What are the implications for the debate in the U.S. today? The clearest is that torture does not work, at least in reducing terrorism. It's another nail in the coffin for those who justify torture as a tool of counterterrorism. It also suggests that we don't need to worry about how
Volume 3, Issue 3
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Does torture stop terror? Nope (cont.) revealing the details of the U.S. torture program will provide terrorists with the skills to avoid providing information to interrogators. Instead, it suggests that a surprisingly easy and morally unambiguous counterterrorism strategy is to be nice to people. Being
mean (like, say, torturing) seems to annoy some victims, who go on to become or serve as examples to new terrorists. James I. Walsh is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. This article originally appeared on Walsh’s blog Back Channels (http://
backchannels.blogspot.com) on 22 April 2009.
1 Walsh J and Piazza J. Why respecting physical integrity rights reduces terrorism. Available at: http:// www.politicalscience.uncc.edu/ jwalsh/cps3.pdf
3
The Cingranelli and Richards (CIRI) Human Rights Dataset contains standards-based quantitative information on government respect for a wide range of internationally recognised human rights in countries throughout the world. See http:// ciri.binghamton.edu/index.asp for more information.
2 See http://www.mipt.org/ for more information.
A need for vigilance: Kenyan media on terrorism and rights abuses by Alfred Itunga, Independent Medico-Legal Unit, Kenya
“If there is any area of previously shared international norms that exhibit the change of paradigm in counterterrorism measures, it is in the question of treatment of suspects vis-à-vis the prohibition of torture. As it is today, the paradigm of war seems to justify torture of suspects as ‘a lesser evil’.” --Mbugua Mureithi, advocate of the high court of Kenya In the name of fighting terrorism, Kenya has put in place measures – often greatly influenced by external (western) donors – that have resulted in infringement of fundamental human rights to criminal suspects, their families, disregard of due process, and refoulement of suspects to areas where they are put at further risk. The Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU), formed in 2003, has been accused of operating outside the parameters of law by carrying out enforced disappearances and torture
and inhuman treatment against alleged terror suspects. For example, in November 2008 eight Kenyan terror suspects were flown back to Kenya from Ethiopia where they were held more than a year and tortured and intimidated to admit their involvement in terrorist acts. A Kenyan citizen continues to languish in the notorious Guantanamo Bay detention facility, in spite of denials by the Kenyan government that he is a citizen. In order to address these problems, there is need to effectively investigate and report on the perpetrators and circumstances of torture in a timely fashion, document all incidents, and litigate on cases of both torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, and extra-judicial killings. Advocacy for policy and legislative changes is necessary to effectively address the disturbing phenomenon of torture in Kenya, as is the sensitization, training and capacity building of those within state institutions (and beyond) in order to develop a culture of
Participants at the event included representatives from more than a dozen news outlets in Kenya.
rights compliance and reduce incidences of such violations. Moreover, synergy between journalists and lawyers is necessary to provide an audience to survivors of systematic violence, and assist them with obtaining justice and redress. The role of media in reporting rights violations Media practitioners have continued to play a critical role in highlighting cases of inhuman treatment in the war against terror in Kenya. However, there have been
some cases of torture, arbitrary arrests and renditions that have gone unreported. This has further led to repetition of the same and a culture of impunity prevails. It is therefore imperative that media practitioners effectively highlight and investigate these cases when they come before them and report the crimes for further investigation to impartial authorities, as well as liaise with lawyers, and respective civil society groups to pursue legal remedies for the individuals affected.
Volume 3, Issue 3 On 19-20 March 2009 the Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU), a Kenyan nongovernmental organisation advocating for torture prevention and providing rehabilitation to survivors, brought together 25 Kenyan media representatives to deliberate on how to devise concrete steps to address torture and inhuman acts in the war against terror at a more practical level. The twoday training endeavoured to encourage journalists to join in the fight against torture, especially in the war against terror, through effective investigation, documentation and reporting of cases of human rights violations. Experts present at the event – including human rights lawyers and media representatives – had several pieces of advice for those reporting on these issues. Below are some highlights.
“The lack of definition of terrorism is a problem and the journalists should stop using the term ‘war on terrorism’… in the real sense terrorism is a form of criminality and it is far
Page 3 more than a semantic [distinction].” --Kevin Laue, REDRESS
“Ultimately, the media bears a responsibility to let the public know that torture comes at a price – hardened feelings, entrenched hatred and alienation by individuals and even whole communities.” --Kwamchetsi Makokha, media consultant
• Not report the government position as fact without proper investigation. • Report objectively, even on cases of known terrorists. • Partner with civil society to ensure government accountability. • Advocate for the domestication of the UN Convention against Torture.
Ultimately, the media bears a responsibility to let the public know that torture comes at a price… —Kwamchetsi Makokha “It is important for journalists to research and get their documentation in order. There is also a need to inform people from the grassroots upwards so as to kill the ignorance. Do not be afraid of what you can do as the media.” --Edna Nyaloti, legal advocate The participants agreed that it is incumbent on journalists to:
In addition to the in-depth discussions with media representatives, IMLU also hosted a separate event to sensitise news editors to these issues, because they play a critical role in printing stories about rights abuses and counter-terrorism. IMLU also has been challenged to spearhead the drafting of a national anti-torture bill and to involve the media in advocating for its passage and endorsement by the public.
The resounding lesson is the need for the media to improve their ability to report on rights violations, with a view of creating a culture of government accountability in cases of violence and unsanctioned killings of Kenyans. As Kwamchetsi Makokha noted: “The media, through playing its traditional roles of watchdog, agenda-setter, moral guide and mediator, can redefine the way the socalled war on terror is fought…” Alfred Itunga is Communications & Advocacy Officer at IMLU in Nairobi. Visit www.imlu.org for more information.
Recommended resources
Readers of the “Preventing Torture within the Fight against Terrorism” newsletter may be interested in the following recent reports which discuss in more depth the issues touched upon in this issue. These resources are not meant to be an exhaustive list.
The case against a special terrorism court from Human Rights First argues that the U.S. federal criminal justice system is the most appropriate means to try
terror suspects and ensure their legal and human rights are respected. Available at: http:// www.humanrightsfirst.org/ pdf/090323-LS-nsc-policypaper.pdf
Doctors and detainees offers a documentary film and other information about medical professionals’ complicity in illegal interrogations of terror suspects. Available at: http:// www.doctorsanddetainees.o rg/Home/Home.html
E-bulletin on counterterrorism and human rights from the International Commission of Jurists is a round-up of related news from the previous month. Available at: http:// www.icj.org/IMG/E-BulletinApr09-Final.pdf
FIDH recommendations on human rights in Egypt describes ongoing challenges to human rights posed by that country’s emergency law. Available at: http://www.fidh.org/IMG/ pdf/EU-egypt-council-of-
association-note-april09.pdf
Guantanamo Global Justice Initiative April newsletter from the Center for Constitutional Rights provides updates to legal cases involving Guantanamo detainees. Available at: http:// ccrjustice.org/files/aprilenglish.pdf
Human rights reporting and U.S. foreign policy from the Council on Foreign Relations looks at the annual reports on human rights in different
Volume 3, Issue 3
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International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) Borgergade 13 · P.O. Box 9049
For more information...
1022 Copenhagen K DENMARK Phone: +45 33 76 06 00 Fax: +45 33 76 05 00 Email: irct@irct.org www.irct.org
FIDH 17, passage de la main d’or 75011 Paris FRANCE Phone: +33 1 43 55 25 18 Fax: +33 1 43 55 18 80
The “Preventing Torture within the Fight against Terrorism” newsletter is published bimonthly as part of a joint FIDH-IRCT project aimed at reinstating respect for the prohibition against torture in counterterrorism strategies both globally and in ten target countries: Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Mauritania, the Philippines, Russia and Syria. The newsletter editors welcome submissions of content for future issues, including articles (send query first), comments, letters to the editor (up to 250 words) and suggestions for recommended reading. To submit content or make enquiries, email Brandy Bauer, IRCT Senior Communications Officer, at tortureandterrorNL@irct.org
www.fidh.org
For more information about the “Preventing Torture within the Fight against Terrorism” project, please visit the IRCT web site (www.irct.org) or contact: Sune Segal, Head of Communications, IRCT, +45 20 34 69 14, sse@irct.org or Isabelle Brachet, Director of Operations, FIDH, +33 1 43 55 25 18, ibrachet@fidh.org
This newsletter is being published with funding from the European Commission. The views contained herein are those of the authors’ and do not represent those of the EC.
Recommended resources (cont.) countries issued by the U.S. State Department and the contradictions with the U.S.’s own rights record. Available at: http://www.cfr.org/ publication/18939/ us_human_rights_report.ht ml?breadcrumb=%2F
Ignoring executions and torture from Human Rights Watch examines the way Bangladeshi security forces have abused rights in the name of fighting terrorism. Available at: http:// www.hrw.org/en/ reports/2009/05/18/ ignoring-executions-andtorture
No direction home: returns from Guantanamo to Yemen
from Human Rights Watch describes how repatriation of detainees in U.S. custody to Yemen must come as part of a plan to ensure their rights and rehabilitation. Available at: http://www.hrw.org/en/ reports/2009/03/28/nodirection-home-0
Open secret: illegal detention and torture by the joint antiterrorism task force in Uganda from Human Rights Watch looks at the abuses perpetrated in the name of counter-terrorism in that country. Available at: http:// www.hrw.org/node/82082
Reintegration and reparation for victims of rendition and unlawful detention in the
‘war on terror’: a European perspective from REDRESS is a summary of a conference from Sept 2008 on these issues. Available at: http://www.redress.org/ publications/ Reintegration%20and% 20Reparation% 20Report_FinalDraft_27Mar ch_CLEAN.pdf
Returning home: resettlement and reintegration of detainees released from the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from the University of California, Berkeley looks at the reintegration needs of ex-detainees. Available at: http://hrc.berkeley.edu/ pdfs/GtmoReturningHome.pdf