The international human rights group Amnesty International asserts that the United States has not put a stop to its use of torture against detainees even after the international outcry over the use of torture at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba.
The information was part of the group's report to the U.N. Committee Against Torture which is meeting this week in Geneva.
The report concluded, 'Evidence continues to emerge of widespread torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of detainees held in U.S. custody in Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba,
Iraq and other locations.'
Officials from Amnesty International were also angered over the fact that no senior American officials have been held responsible for the torture of detainees. In addition, Amnesty says that the anti-torture law passed by Congress last year has 'serious limitations.'
Curt Goering, the senior deputy executive director of Amnesty International USA explained, 'Although the U.S. government continues to assert its condemnation of torture and ill-treatment, these statements contradict what is happening in practice.
He added, 'The U.S. government is not only failing to take steps to eradicate torture. It is actually creating a climate in which torture and other ill-treatment can flourish — including by trying to narrow the definition of torture.'
Under U.N. regulations, the United States must submit documentation showing it is following the rules designated by the U.N. regarding torture. Members of the committee will have a chance to question American officials at that time.
The report also cited instances of abuses involve alleged use of stun guns on handcuffed and blindfolded detainees in Iraq in March 2005 and the use of hoods, shackles and deprivation of food and water in Afghanistan through at least March 2005.
The U.S. filed a response in January of this year indicating it remains 'unequivocally opposed' to torture. American officials reserved further comment until they appear before the committee Friday and Monday of this coming week.
