A former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General John Shalikashvili (Ret. USA), was among 12 retired Admirals and Generals today who released a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee urging Members to closely examine Attorney General nominee Alberto Gonzales' role in setting U.S. policy on torture. Mr. Gonzales’ confirmation hearings begin January 6, 2005.
Specifically, the Admirals and Generals express concern about Gonzales' recommendation that the Geneva Conventions not be applied to the conflict in Afghanistan. At a news conference organized by Human Rights First (formerly the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights), General Joseph P. Hoar (Ret. USMC) and Brigadier General James Cullen (Ret. USA) released the letter signed by them and the 10 other retired Admirals and Generals.
The letter states:
“During his tenure as White House Counsel, Mr. Gonzales appears to have played a significant role in shaping U.S. detention and interrogation operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Guantanamo Bay, and elsewhere. Today, it is clear that these operations have fostered greater animosity toward the United States, undermined our intelligence gathering efforts, and added to the risks facing our troops serving around the world. Before Mr. Gonzales assumes the position of Attorney General, it is critical to understand whether he intends to adhere to the positions he adopted as White House Counsel, or chart a revised course more consistent with fulfilling our nation’s complex security interests, and maintaining a military that operates within the rule of law.”
The full letter is available at: http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/etn/gonzales/statements/gonz_military_010405.pdf
General Hoar, who was the former Commander of U.S. Central Command and served as General Norman Schwarzkopf's Chief of Staff at Central Command, said, “Mr. Gonzales’ recommendations – those he wrote and those he supervised – show no respect for decades of military judgments about the importance of the Geneva Conventions and the rules of interrogation. His opinions, and the actions that followed not only put our troops at risk, they put our nation’s honor at risk.”
Brigadier General Cullen added: “Lawyers support their commanders, and a critical part of this responsibility is to tell commanders, including the Commander in Chief, what the bright line of the law is. In his role as White House Counsel, Mr. Gonzales failed to do this — and it was a critical failing. He paid more credence to his political vetters than to the law – and we have now seen the results: in the form of torture of those held in U.S. custody and in the stain on the reputation of the United States.”
The full list of signers to the letter:
Brigadier General David M. Brahms (Ret. USMC)
Brigadier General James Cullen (Ret. USA)
Brigadier General Evelyn P. Foote (Ret. USA)
Lieutenant General Robert Gard (Ret. USA)
Vice Admiral Lee F. Gunn (Ret. USN)
Admiral Don Guter (Ret. USN)
General Joseph Hoar (Ret. USMC)
Rear Admiral John D. Hutson (Ret. USN)
Lieutenant General Claudia Kennedy (Ret. USA)
General Merrill McPeak (Ret. USAF)
Major General Melvyn Montano (Ret. USA)
General John Shalikashvili (Ret. USA)
Also at the news conference, the Washington Director of Human Rights First, Elisa Massimino, reviewed a briefing paper outlining Gonzales’ views on torture, executive power, the Geneva Conventions and military commissions. The briefing paper is available at: http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/etn/gonzales/briefs/brief_20041220_Gonz_all.pdf
In her remarks, Massimino said: "Mr. Gonzales has the burden of demonstrating that he can exercise independent judgment within the bounds of the rule of law. His record so far on that score is not encouraging. Mr. Gonzales facilitated positions — on torture, interrogations, detention and executive power — that have been rejected by the courts and have failed as a matter of policy.”
Massimino also released a flow chart, “The Role of Alberto Gonzales in Setting Torture Policy,” that shows how Gonzales was in the center of the decision making in authorizing torture. The chart is available at: http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/etn/gonzales/
charts/gonz_torture_chart.pdf
Links to all documents:
Letter from military leaders – http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/etn/gonzales/
statements/gonz_military_010405.pdf
Chart Showing Gonzales’ Role in Setting Torture Policy –
http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/etn/gonzales/charts/
gonz_torture_chart.pdf
Report on Gonzales’ Rights Record– http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/etn/gonzales/briefs/
brief_20041220_Gonz_all.pdf
