"Please Do What the U.S. Won't. Prosecute Torturers."
Dozens of U.S. human rights groups will present an open letter to the
Spanish public to consulates and Madrid officials on Valentine's Day.
They will encourage support of Spanish courts in prosecuting U.S.
officials who authorized torture.
What: By appointment will deliver the letter and
flowers to the consul general or ambassador on Valentine's Day, a
celebrated holiday in Spain.
When: Monday February 14. Valentine’s Day. Meetings scheduled throughout day. Details at http://rootsaction.org
Where: Spanish Consulates in New York, Boston, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami.
Spanish Embassy, 2375 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington D.C.
LOCATION TBD, Madrid
March 1 is the deadline set by Spanish Judge Eloy Velasco to determine
if he will prosecute the “Bush Six” — the group of Bush-era government
lawyers including former White House Counsel and Attorney General
Alberto Gonzales, for violating international law by creating a “legal”
justification for torture. It was a court in Spain that indicted
Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet.
The Obama administration declared last year that it would not pursue
prosecutions, ignoring the U.N. Convention Against Torture. Recent
documents released by WikiLeaks demonstrate that the Obama government
has been heavily pressuring Spanish authorities not to pursue
prosecution.
“The Obama administration has been pressuring Spain not to proceed, and
thus let the Bush administration actions stand. But justice must be
served.” —Coleen Rowley, former FBI agent.
On Valentine’s Day, representatives from groups will deliver copies of
an open letter to the Spanish public, to the embassy of Spain in
Washington, and the Spanish consulates in seven US cities, to thank and
encourage Spain to prosecute the cases. They will fundraise to place
billboards and ads in Spain.
This action comes just days after former President George W. Bush
cancelled plans to travel to Switzerland after he learned the Center for
Constitutional Rights and Berlin-based European Center for
Constitutional and Human Rights sought indictment of him there for
torture. George Bush has openly admitted authorizing waterboarding on
national television, explaining that “the lawyer” said it was legal.
More details on http://rootsaction.org
###
Partner organizations behind this effort include CodePink Women for
Peace, High Road for Human Rights, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns,
National Accountability Action Network, National Campaign for
Nonviolent Resistance, Pax Christi USA, Progressive Democrats of
America, Psychologists for Social Responsibility, Robert Jackson
Steering Committee, RootsAction.org,
September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, Tackling Torture at the
Top Committee of Women Against Military Madness, Veterans for Peace,
Voters for Peace, War Criminals Watch, WarIsACrime.org, WeThePeopleNow.org, and World Can't Wait.
Additional signers include: Amnesty International USA, Bill of Rights Defense Committee, Council for the National Interest, Democrats.com,
Fellowship on Reconciliation, United for Peace and Justice, Velvet
Revolution, Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, War Resisters
League, and Witness Against Torture.
To: The people of Spain
From: The people of the United States of America
We are writing to thank you and to ask for your support as your courts
consider cases to bring American officials to justice for the crime of
torture. A Spanish judge, acting under international law, will soon
decide whether to investigate US officials' roles in authorizing
torture. We hope you agree that such cases must go forward, despite
pressure from the Obama administration to drop them.
The organizations signing this letter represent hundreds of thousands in
the American public who believe the US government must be held to the
same rule of law as other countries. We are profoundly disappointed that
our own government refuses to prosecute former officials, despite open
admissions and government documents showing that they approved torture.
It will take a public show of support for the case to withstand
pressures from Washington. WikiLeaks cables show the extremes to which
U.S. officials have gone to thwart any attempt by Spain or other
countries to uphold justice. We applaud the courage shown by Spanish
officials who insist on giving priority to the rule of law.
Despite earlier assertions by President Barack Obama and Attorney
General Eric Holder that waterboarding is torture, former President
George W. Bush publicly stated three times last year that he authorized
waterboarding and added proudly that he would do it again. In a TV
interview aired on November 8, Bush said he considered waterboarding
legal "because the lawyer said it was legal." Waterboarding and other
forms of torture were banned by the UN Convention against Torture and
Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, ratified by
the United States in 1994.
If international law is to serve any useful purpose, other countries
must condemn violations "by any other nations, including those which sit
here now in judgment," in the words of the chief prosecutor at
Nuremberg.
We sincerely hope that the citizens of Spain and its judiciary will dispel the notion that any country is above the law.
Signed,
Code Pink Women for Peace, High Road for Human Rights, Maryknoll Office
for Global Concerns, National Accountability Action Network, National
Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance, Pax Christi USA, Progressive
Democrats of America, Psychologists for Social Responsibility, Robert
Jackson Steering Committee, RootsAction.org, September 11th Families for
Peaceful Tomorrows, Tackling Torture at the Top Committee of Women
Against Military Madness, Veterans for Peace, Voters for Peace, War
Criminals Watch, WarIsACrime.org, WeThePeopleNow.org, and World Can't
Wait.
Along with:
Amnesty International USA, Bill of Rights Defense Committee, Council for
the National Interest, Democrats.com, Fellowship on Reconciliation,
United for Peace and Justice, Velvet Revolution, Veteran Intelligence
Professionals for Sanity, War Resisters League, and Witness Against
Torture.
*****