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Getting Away with Torture? Human Rights Watch Calls for Accountability
Into U.S. Abuse of Detainees
Birthday of Imprisoned Panchen Lama: The World's Youngest
Political Prisoner Turns 16
Ousted Ecuadorian President Gutierrez Exiled in Brazil Following
Mass Uprising
Fmr. Haitian Prime Minister Beaten in Prison as Interim Gv't
Prepares to Charge Him in Connection with Political Killings
Getting Away with Torture? Human Rights Watch Calls
for Accountability Into U.S. Abuse of Detainees
Human Rights Watch is demanding that a special prosecutor
be named to investigate Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld,
former CIA director George Tenet and other top officials for
possible war crimes related to the torture and abuse of prisoners.
We speak with Human Rights Watch special counsel Reed Brody.
[includes rush
transcript]
An internal investigation by the Army's inspector general
has cleared four of the Army's top five officers in Iraq of
any wrongdoing in connection to the torture of Iraqi detainees
at the Abu Ghraib prison. Unless new evidence emerges, the
investigation effectively ends the Army's investigation into
its role in the abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison.
Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch has demanded that a special
prosecutor be named to investigate Defense Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld, former CIA director George Tenet and other top officials
for possible war crimes related to the torture and abuse of
prisoners.
The report, titled "Getting
Away with Torture? Command Responsibility for the U.S Abuse
of Detainees" - found that there was overwhelming
evidence of widespread mistreatment and abuse of Muslim prisoners
not only at Abu Ghraib but throughout Afghanistan and Iraq,
Guantanamo Bay and other "secret locations" around
the world. The report also called for investigations of Lt.
General Ricardo Sanchez - the former top U.S commander in
Iraq - and General Geoffery Miller the former commander of
the prison camp at Guantanamo Bay.
Birthday of Imprisoned Panchen Lama: The World's
Youngest Political Prisoner Turns 16
On May 17th, 1995 the Chinese government abducted Gendun
Choekyi Nyima who was then six years old and had just been
recognized by the Dali Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama - which
is the second most prominent holy man in Tibetan Buddhism.
He turns 16 today. We speak with Robert Thurman of Columbia
University. [includes rush
transcript]
Today is the 16th birthday of a boy considered to be the
youngest political prisoner in the world. On May 17th, 1995
the Chinese government abducted Gendun Choekyi Nyima who was
then six years old and had just been recognized by the Dali
Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama - which is the second most prominent
holy man in Tibetan Buddhism. And despite repeated requests,
no international observer has ever been allowed access to
the boy.
Today a group of cyclists will be completing a five day ride
that began in Washington D.C. They will be delivering a letter
to U.N Secretary General Kofi Anan asking him to pressure
the Chinese government to release Gendun Choekyi Nyima.
- Robert Thurman, Chair of Religious Studies at Columbia
University, where he is the Jey Tsong Khapa Professor of
Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies.
Ousted Ecuadorian President Gutierrez Exiled in Brazil
Following Mass Uprising
Ecuador's ousted president Lucio Gutierrez was flown to
Brazil Sunday where he will live in exile following Congress's
decision to remove him from office amid massive anti-government
protests. We go to Quito, Ecuador to speak with a member of
the Center for Economic and Social Rights. [includes rush
transcript]
Ecuador's ousted president Lucio Gutierrez was flown to Brazil
Sunday where he will live in exile after being forced out
of office last week.
Gutierrez had been holed up in the Brazilian ambassador's
residence in Quito for four days following Congress's decision
to remove him from office amid massive anti-government protests.
He left the residence by the back entrance Sunday and was
taken by a police vehicle to a helicopter. He was accompanied
by his wife and one of two daughters.
In a letter requesting asylum released to reporters, Gutierrez
wrote: "I feel personally threatened and unable to guarantee
my liberty and physical integrity, as well as of my wife's
and of my daughters."
Gutierrez took office in January 2003 as a populist, anti-corruption
reformer but soon angered many Ecuadorians by adopting economic
austerity measures. Many also were upset by growing accusations
of nepotism and corruption in his inner circle.
He dissolved the Supreme Court a week ago in hopes of placating
protesters who accused him of stacking the court in his favor.
But the move backfired and set off even larger protests.
After removing Gutierrez from office, lawmakers named former
Vice President Alfredo Palacio as Ecuador's new president.
His supporters contend he was removed from power illegally,
and the Organization of American States has decided to send
a high-level diplomatic delegation to investigate whether
Gutierrez's removal was constitutional.
He is the third president of Ecuador to be removed from office
in eight years.
- Patricio Pazmino, Executive Director, Center for Economic
and Social Rights.
Fmr. Haitian Prime Minister Beaten in Prison as Interim
Gv't Prepares to Charge Him in Connection with Political Killings
The US-backed interim government of Haiti is preparing to
charge former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune with having a role
in a series of political killings in the town of St. Marc.
in February 2004. Meanwhile, his family says he was badly
beaten on Friday. We speak with a friend of Yvon Neptune,
Jean-Jean Pierre. [includes rush
transcript]
The US-backed interim government of Haiti is preparing to
charge former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune with having a role
in a series of political killings in the town of St. Marc
in February 2004. Neptune served as prime minister under Jean
Bertrand Aristide who was ousted last year in what he calls
a modern-day kidnapping in the service of a coup d'etat backed
by the United States. He has denied the accusations and has
refused legal representation because he believes his prosecution
is illegitimate and illegal. This according to Brian Concannon
of the Institute for Justice and Democracy.
Neptune's family says he was badly beaten on Friday as he
was taken to a court in Saint Marc to be charged.
Neptune's indictment comes four days after officials charged
former Interior Minister Jocelerme Privert in the St. Marc
killings. Neptune and Privert had been among dozens of former
government officials who had been jailed without charge since
Aristide's ouster.
- Jean-Jean Pierre, friend of Yvon Neptune.
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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