US: Will the Next Attorney General Allow Torture?

Update:The US Senate confirmed Michael Mukasey’s nomination for US attorney general on November 9, 2007 by a vote of 53-40.  
 
When Michael Mukasey, President Bush's nominee for attorney general, appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee for confirmation hearings in mid-October, senators repeatedly questioned him on the issue of torture.

Related Material US: Attorney General Nominee Should Repudiate Torture Memos Press Release, October 4, 2007 More of Human Rights Watch's work on torture of US detainees Thematic Page More of Human Rights Watch's work on counterterrorism post-9/11 Thematic Page Mukasey's response letter to Senator Leahy Letter, October 24, 2007 Timeline of Mukasey's Nomination to be Attorney General Memorandum, October 25, 2007 US: Senate Should Reject Mukasey Nomination Press Release, October 31, 2007 The Mukasey Nomination Should Hinge on More than Water-Boarding Commentary, November 2, 2007 Free Email Newsletter

During those exchanges, Mukasey was unwilling to denounce “waterboarding” (mock drowning) as torture even though the practice has long been considered a war crime under the laws of war, and has been prosecuted as torture by the United States for more than 100 years.  
 
Mukasey also suggested that so-called "unlawful combatants" in US custody are not entitled to the humane treatment protections of the Geneva Conventions, a view rejected by the Supreme Court in 2006 (see the news release). Because of his unwillingness to repudiate the use of abusive interrogation techniques, such as waterboarding, extended sleep deprivation, and exposure to extreme cold, Human Rights Watch was concerned that Mukasey would adopt such a narrow view of torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment so as to make those prohibitions essentially meaningless.  
 
Human Rights Watch expressed these concerns, along with several other human rights organizations, in a letter that was sent to every member of the Senate Judiciary Committee on October 23, 2007.  
 
Ten senators on the Judiciary Committee expressed in a letter similar dismay with Mukasey's answers on waterboarding and asked Mukasey to clarify his view on whether or not this interrogation technique is torture. These same senators, along with Carl Levin (D-MI), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, submitted further detailed questions to Mukasey on the legality of several torture techniques, including waterboarding.  
 
Mukasey responded, saying waterboarding is "repugnant," but failing to call it illegal (see the news release). Nonetheless, on Tuesday, November 6, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 11-8 to send Mukasey's nomination to the full senate. The vote was primarily along party lines, but Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Charles Schumer (D-NY) supported Mukasey based primarily on his promise to enforce any future ban on waterboarding.  
 
Human Rights Watch still opposes Mukasey’s nomination and calls on the Senate to reject him unless he denounces waterboarding and other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment as illegal.
 

 

Suggest This Page to a Friend Your Email (required) Your Friend's Name Friend's Email (required) Email addresses are not stored. Your Message Enter Security Code (case sensitive) Please read the HRW Privacy Policy