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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group
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To: Lou Weed who wrote (131783)5/6/2004 1:19:32 PM
From: carranza2  Read Replies (1) of 281500
 
The legalities of torture as an interrogation tactic in wartime scenarios are covered by the various Geneva Conventions. Unsurprisingly, torture is illegal under international law. The practical problem is that enforcement of the prohibition during wartime is next to impossible. The only deterrent is the fact that torturers can be criminally prosecuted after the conflict ends, and this is not much of a deterrent.

I posted the CIA policy because it is clear-eyed in its assessment that torture is not a particularly effective means of obtaining reliable information. This leads me to think that torturers may be often fulfilling their own desire to inflict pain when they engage in torture.

On the other hand, if torture is inflicted upon family members or children, I would think that a prisoner would quickly provide accurate information. The CIA's manual doesn't deal with this. If my child were to be tortured in my presence, I'd be singing like a canary, providing trustworthy information. This is what Saddam's regime did.
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