Torture

Torture is the infliction of severe physical or psychological pain as a means of punishment, intimidation, for the extraction of a confession, or the obtainment of information. Torture is prohibited by the UN Convention Against Torture, and is considered a severe violation of human rights. Torture is a controversial topic, with debates over whether certain acts are torture, whether certain groups are carrying out torture, and whether torture is ever justified.

Torture was used by many governments and countries in the past (especially in the Middle Ages). Torture remains a popular method of repression in totalitarian regimes, terrorist and organized crime, and is frequently used by democratic governments as well. During the Algerian war of 1955-1962, the French military used torture against National Liberation Front. Paul Aussaresses, a French general during the Algerian war, defended the use of torture in a 2000 interview in the Paris newspaper Le Monde. In an interview on the CBS newsmagazine 60 Minutes, in response to the question of whether he would torture Al-Qaeda suspects, his answer was, "It seems to me it's obvious."

CIA agents have anonymously confirmed to the Washington Post in a December 26, 2002 report that the CIA routinely uses so-called "stress and duress" interrogation techniques, which are claimed by human rights activists to be acts of torture, in the US-led war on terrorism. These sources state that CIA and military personnel beat up uncooperative suspects, confine them in cramped quarters, duct tape them to stretchers, and use other restraints which maintain the subject in an awkward and painful position for long periods of time.

The Post article continues that sensory deprivation, through the use of hoods and spraypainted goggles, sleep deprivation, and selective use of painkillers for at least one captive who was shot in the groin during his apprehension are also used. The agents also indicate in the report that the CIA as a matter of course hands suspects over to foreign intelligence services with far fewer qualms about torture for more intensive interrogation. The Post reported that one official said, "If you don't violate someone's human rights some of the time, you probably aren't doing your job." The US Government denies that torture is being conducted in the detention camps.

The use of torture has been criticized not only on humanitarian grounds, but on the grounds that evidence extracted by torture tends to be extremely unreliable and that the use of torture corrupts institutions which tolerate it. Torture victims have often reported that the purpose is as much to force acquiescence on an enemy as it is to gain information.

To prevent torture, many legal systems have a right against self-incrimination. The United States includes this right in the fifth amendment to its constitution, which in turn serves as the basis of the Miranda warning that is issued to individuals upon their arrest. Additionally, the US Constitution's eighth amendment expressly forbids the use of "cruel and unusual punishments", which is widely interpreted as a prohibition of the use of torture.

Human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International, are actively involved in working to stop the use of torture throughout the world.

Torture Devices and Methods

• Beatings and physical violence
• Burning at the stake
• Crucifixion
• Disfigurement
• Drowning
• The rack
• Rape
• Sleep deprivation
• The wheel
• The thumbscrew
• Pressing

Stress and Distress Tactics used by Police

Some methods imployed by law enforcement and states are seen by some as being tantemount to torture.

• interrogation or the "third degree"

Methods of Execution

A method of killing a prisoner for a capital crime which involves, or has the potential to involve, a great deal of pain or mutilation is considered to be torture and unacceptable to many who support capital punishment.

• Firing Squad
• Bullet to the back of the head
• Hanging
• Drawing and quartering
• Gas chamber
• Electric chair

See also: Jacobo Timmerman

External Links

• UN Convention Against Torture (http://www.hrweb.org/legal/cat.html)
• U.S. Decries Abuse but Defends Interrogations (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37943-2002Dec25.html), by Dana Priest and Barton Gellman. The Washington Post, December 26, 2002; Page A01. Numerous CIA agents anonymously confirm the use of torture against terrorism suspects, while the government refuses to comment.

Common misspelling and questions (FAQ)

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