The Muslim News - Torturous collusions

Issue 250, Friday 26 February 2010 - 12 Rabi' al-Awwal 1431

Torturous collusions

Immediately after coming to power, US President, Barack Obama, banned the torture of terrorist suspects and ordered an end to “extraordinary rendition” - the practice of transferring kidnapped suspects to secret CIA “black site” jails overseas. He also pledged to close Guantánamo Bay concentration camp within a year, even though he was unable to fulfil the promise.

In contrast, the British Government has refused to acknowledge its involvement in torture, while maintaining a very difficult position: confirming its usage by the US but denying having any knowledge about it. “We all know that after 2002 the American Government of the time changed the rules of the game for its own officers. They didn’t tell us about it,” Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, told Sky News on February 14. The major concern of Miliband is that “the words torture and Britain” are being uttered in the same paragraph or in the same headline.

The tragedy is that it has taken lengthy litigation to force the Government to reveal that MI5 was told by the CIA that former Guantánamo detainee, Binyam Mohamed, was subjected to “cruel, inhuman and degrading” treatment after being arrested in Pakistan in 2002. And it was also only after years of legal action that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) admitted to “substantial breaches” of the European Human Rights Convention over the killing of Basra hotel worker Baha Mousa while in British detention in 2003, when banned torture techniques were used.

Lawyers for another 66 Iraqis are also seeking a judicial review calling for a single inquiry into Britain’s detention policy during the Iraq war, citing similar allegations of systematic abuse.

Accusations of Britain’s alleged collusion in torture have also been raised in more than two dozen cases surrounding British residents and nationals, similar to Binyam, with several cases going to court to seek redress. Reprieve, his legal firm, has warned that the CIA evidence was “only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to British complicity in torture” and that there was “much more is to come.”

Miliband has pledged to publish guidance for Britain’s intelligence and security agencies but only after the Intelligence and Security Committee has completed its scrutiny. It has already been revealed that the Parliamentary watchdog has not been able to do its job of overseeing the agencies because of the secrecy that is endemic throughout the workings of Government.

To restore confidence in the country’s institutions, it is far better to come clean and declaring any wrongdoings rather than only admitting half-truths after being dragged out through lengthy court procedures with the hopes of hanging on until after the forthcoming general elections.

It may also help to restore the country’s reputation in the eyes of the world as an upholder of justice and improve the discredited image of politicians. Not least of all, it should lead to essential reforms to prove that everyone must be made accountable.