Proxy detention 'collusion' exposed
Governments around the world, including those of Arab and European states, have colluded in the secret detention of terrorism suspects, UN investigators have reported.
An extensive report, released on Wednesday, paints a disturbing picture of a systematic secret detention programme involving many countries.
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The 222-page document, which will be presented at a forthcoming meeting of the UN Human Rights Council, is the result of several years of investigation, and notes that secret detention is "a manifold human rights violation that cannot be justified under any circumstances".
Canada is mentioned specifically here:
The UK, Canada, Australia and Germany are all accused of "taking advantage of the situation of secret detention," by sending questions and receiving information from prisoners held in proxy detention.
Al Jazeera published this on Saturday. I don't recall seeing any follow-up in the Canadian media but I'm sure I just missed it. Right?
We already know about the cases involving Canadians such as those whose detention has been the subject of public inquiries here. And we know about Omar Khadr but his detention isn't secret. Why do I get the feeling there are still more?
H/t to JimBobby on Twitter.
Thanks for the h/t, PogFeller.
I hesitated to tweet that link on accounta AlJazeera being the source but the references to a UN report seemed credible. I reckon AlJazeera is at least as credible as the National Post but the smear job they've been subjected to makes me loathe to cite them for fear of the inevitable response.
If the truth ever comes out about our government's complicity in abuse and torture by proxy, it'll make the Somalia incident seem like a Sunday School picnic... except the burden of guilt will lie squarely on the politicians who allowed -- nay, encouraged -- such policies.
Is the UN Human Rights Council the body that certain persons in our government are fond of accusing of being anti-semitic and just generally hippy-dippy? (Please note: I take the UN Human Rights Council seriously; I do not take our government seriously, except insofar as I am forced to live with them.) So you know what the reaction of a Jason Kenney is going to be to a report and investigations from the UNHRC?
None the less, it sounds like an important report, and one we must work with. The list of countries that co-operated with the U.S. is missing some of those that "hosted" black sites -- Thailand (where Abu Zubaydah at least was tortured) and Poland, eg -- although presumably those countries weren't doing the torture for Western countries.
There is still a black site at Bagram air base, and I doubt the names of the people there were on the list Obama just released. God knows what they're still keeping in Iraq, or on Diego Garcia. Obama has also endorsed the continued use of kidnapping.
Related: Secret U.S. prisons in Afghanistan