Mexican citizens are in an uproar over newly released videos which appear to show a U.S. contractor teaching Mexican policy how to torture suspects, including a crude variation of water boarding. The Mexican police have been repeatedly accused of torture and this video show them practicing such techniques as dragging people through their own vomit under the directions of a U.S. adviser. It appears that we are succeeding in exporting something to Mexico, but (to paraphrase Ross Perot) that “great sucking sound” is not the loss of jobs.
The videos show a variety of torture techniques, including good old-fashioned brutality like jumping on a suspect’s ribs and dunking a suspect’s head in a hole said to be full of excrement and rats..
For the video, click here
The videos involve an “elite unit” in the city of Leon and Guanajuato state.
The videos poses a problem for both the Bush Administration and Congress. While both Democrats and Republicans in Congress have blocked any serious effort to investigate the Bush Administration’s torture program, it remains a crime. Attorney General Mukasey has refused to take action or even answer the question of whether waterboarding is torture. Now, however, we appear to be exporting our new found expertise to our neighbors.
Yet, how could the Justice Department investigate the allegations when it is refusing to investigate the Administration’s own torture program? Likewise, how are Democrats going to call for hearings on torture when they have refused to take meaningful action against a torture program created and directed only a few miles from the Capitol building? We have finally reached a point of complete moral bankruptcy and hypocrisy on the issue. There was a time when we were the leading voice against torture in the world. We are now viewed as an exporter and practicioner of torture.
For the full story, click here.
I could have sworn that America was a government of laws,not of men. Martha, I will take your logic in the other direction. I haven’t seen or heard any further evidence that the original story was incorrect. I guess CNN and MSNBC are liberal when you are used to watching the “news” on Fox.
Funny how tonights news never said a word about this other than it was training for the Mexican law enforcement. Not a peep about it being American trainers. Not one peep. That has to be a first for the liberal media: for once it isn’t America’s fault and the vicious but small in number lunatics will have to blame someone else.
congress already approved the aid. Only chance to block it will be future fund authorization (ie, next years congress).
However, it won’t be easy. Politicians will be under some pressure as the violence of the drug war in Mexico continues.
And Bush and congress agreed to give 400 million dollars in aid to do this. This must be stopped. And teaching to withstand torture is the same as teaching torture because someone has to be the torturer in both cases. Do you really think that the Mexican police aren’t going to use their knowledge in the wrong way? of course they are. We need to block this aid to Mexico somehow and also look at how morally perverted our government had become and is helping other governments like Mexico to become.
David MV,
We have our facts straight here. Please reread the posts and original story with links.
Thank you!
People…get your facts straight
The video shows some training for elite forces on how to withstand torture tactics if they are captured by drug dealers…not to torture people
I do not see the “buzz” or indignation about this, America has no right to judge, condemn or even criticize ANYBODY until Guantanamo is closed and those tortured and jailed illegally receive an apology from the US Government
So lets mind our own business and clean our home first
Jill:
“3. Finally, to condemn the use of torture and illegality in one’s own nation is only disloyal in the eyes of those engaging in illegalities. Demanding one’s govt. follow the rule of law is displaying loyalty to the Constitution. We do not have a “dear leader” we have a govt. of laws.”
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Old TR couldn’t have said it any better though he may have equaled it.*
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* “To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.” — Theodore Roosevelt
There are several highly distrubing pieces of information in this story. 1. U.S. private contractors are doing the training. Indeed, as Dundar pointed out, the english speaker may be from anywhere as the contracting companies are hiring from dictatorships around the world. Private military contractors, paid with our public tax money to “train” or fight in other countries (as well as police our own citizens as they did during Katrina) is now the norm and quite a dangerous trend. These groups have no loayalty to the U.S. Constitution and they have so far evaded attempts to hold them accountable in a court of law. I would hope Congress would withdrawl all funding for these companies.
2. The SERE program was used by the cheneybush people as a model in the developoment of their systemic torture program. They had psychologists and physicians look over the techniques and recommend how to implement them at prisons and black sites all over the world. These orders came from the top, not the bottom of the chain of command. For this, and many other reasons, the Mexican people have every right to be worried that the “training sessions” have a dual purpose/use.
3. Finally, to condemn the use of torture and illegality in one’s own nation is only disloyal in the eyes of those engaging in illegalities. Demanding one’s govt. follow the rule of law is displaying loyalty to the Constitution. We do not have a “dear leader” we have a govt. of laws.
Read the article and watch the video. This is not teaching the Mexican Police the “How To’s” of torture but rather teaching them how to withstand torture and the practices to which they may be subjected. This is no different than the various levels of SERE training that US Pilots and Special Operators go through. Apparently torture is a buzz word now-a-days and even the context of the title is is misleading if not outright inflamatory.
“in this video, showing an American instructing Mexican police”.
That’s it. You don’t see the “American”, he doesn’t talk to the camera. For all viewers know he is Russian, French, or any of a dozen nationalities, but for the AP it is convenient to blame America….
“appear to show a U.S. contractor teaching”
I guess most missed this line in the article. Isn’t the first rule innocent until proven guilty……………?