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CIA Kidnapping and Secret Detention Practices

Dec 15 2005

CIA Kidnapping and Secret Detention Practices

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Human Rights

By ACLU

The ACLU Takes on CIA Kidnapping and Secret Detention Practices

Last week, as the ACLU filed an historic lawsuit on behalf of an innocent European kidnapped by the CIA and held in a secret detention center, the president and the secretary of state continued to deny these unlawful practices.



			Khaled El-Masri with two of his children MEDIA LINKS With your help, the ACLU has brought the issue of prisoner abuse to the attention of our leaders and the world. Below are links to just a few related breaking news stories (some may require registration): Secretary Rice's Rendition (New York Times Editorial) House Defies Bush and Backs McCain on Detainee Torture (New York Times) Senate Is Set to Require White House to Account for Secret Prisons(New York Times) Investigator Sees Signs of CIA Role in Abductions(Washington Post) The Abolition of Torture(New Republic)

"We abide by the law of the United States. We do not torture," said President Bush in a White House press conference on Tuesday. But the same morning, across town, the world heard a different story from Khaled El-Masri, a German citizen who was kidnapped during a vacation and transported, or "rendered," to Afghanistan where he was drugged, beaten and held in secret for five months.

The practice of "extraordinary rendition" violates the Constitution and United States law. Its very purpose is to enable interrogations in places where, in the United States' view, no laws apply. Last week, the practice was also denied by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who told reporters "the United States does not transport, and has not transported, detainees from one country to another for the purpose of interrogation using torture."

The tide is turning in Washington on the issue of U.S.-sponsored torture and abuse. Last night, the House overwhelmingly supported the McCain amendment to bolster prohibitions against cruel and degrading treatment. The vote was also a loss for Vice President Dick Cheney who has lobbied vigorously to exempt the CIA from the restrictions proposed by McCain. This is great win for everyone who cares about due process, liberty and the rule of law -- thank you for helping make it possible with your actions over the last month.

To find out more about our lawsuit challenging the CIA’s practice of extraordinary rendition go to: http://www.aclu.org/rendition

To date, more than 77,000 pages of government documents have been released in response to the ACLU's Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. The ACLU has been posting these documents online at: www.aclu.org/torturefoia

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