quotations about torture
Torture is one of the ultimate abuses of state power, and the use of extreme violence that exploits the powerlessness of individuals subject to state control is anathema to the rule of law. It easily becomes a license to target anyone who is declared to be a threat.
LUTZ OETTE
"Trump's embrace of torture is irresponsible and explosive", The Conversation, January 31, 2017
Torture is certainly a dark and unsettling subject, but like I mentioned before, I feel a responsibility as a scholar to investigate and think critically about human rights, about gross injustice. In the long term, it's in the self-interest of the United States to reflect, deeply and seriously, on our policies and actions.
ELISABETH WEBER
"The Abomination of Torture", The Independent, May 11, 2017
Some may argue that we would be more effective if we sanctioned torture or other expedient methods to obtain information from the enemy. They would be wrong. Beyond the basic fact that such actions are illegal, history shows that they also are frequently neither useful nor necessary. Certainly, extreme physical action can make someone "talk;" however, what the individual says may be of questionable value.
DAVID H. PETRAEUS
Official Memo to Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen serving in Multi-National Force-Iraq, May 10, 2007