Definition of Tortue
Definition of Torture.
The definition of torture has long been a controversial issue. In the Convention Against Torture in which the United States was one of the parties that signed on, torture was defined as “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, [was] intentionally inflicted on a person.” Unsatisfied with this broad definition, John Yoo wrote a memo to the counsel to the President, Alberto R. Gonzales, attempting to give further meaning to torture. Concerning the mental aspect of torture, Yoo wrote that it “must result in significant psychological harm of significant duration, e.g., lasting for months or even years.” This definition was flawed because it focused on only the duration of the psychological harm. Consequently, any other act, no matter how gruesome or equally effective in producing mental pain, could not be classified as torture, if the pain did not last for “months or even years”,.
In 2001, Mohammed al Qahtani was captured by the U.S Force in Afghanistan. After being accused of being the 20th hijacker in the 9/11 attack by the White House, he was transferred to Guantanamo Bay, where he was subjected to extremely inhumane interrogation techniques that traumatized and degraded him brutally. For example, he was told that “a dog [was] held in higher esteem” than he was. The interrogators then taught him “lessons such as stay, come and bark” in order to “elevate his social status up to that of a dog.” (Margulies p.87) Those treatments not only dehumanized but also left a severe psychological effect on him. Al Qahtani was later reported to show some “extreme psychological trauma (talking to non-existent people, reporting hearing voices, crouching in a cell covered with a sheet for hours on end).” (Margulies 86) During his time at Guantanamo Bay, Al Qahtani was also put in solitary confinement for up to thirty days and exposed to life-threatening environmental manipulations such as freezing temperatures. According to
The definition of torture has long been a controversial issue. In the Convention Against Torture in which the United States was one of the parties that signed on, torture was defined as “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, [was] intentionally inflicted on a person.” Unsatisfied with this broad definition, John Yoo wrote a memo to the counsel to the President, Alberto R. Gonzales, attempting to give further meaning to torture. Concerning the mental aspect of torture, Yoo wrote that it “must result in significant psychological harm of significant duration, e.g., lasting for months or even years.” This definition was flawed because it focused on only the duration of the psychological harm. Consequently, any other act, no matter how gruesome or equally effective in producing mental pain, could not be classified as torture, if the pain did not last for “months or even years”,.
In 2001, Mohammed al Qahtani was captured by the U.S Force in Afghanistan. After being accused of being the 20th hijacker in the 9/11 attack by the White House, he was transferred to Guantanamo Bay, where he was subjected to extremely inhumane interrogation techniques that traumatized and degraded him brutally. For example, he was told that “a dog [was] held in higher esteem” than he was. The interrogators then taught him “lessons such as stay, come and bark” in order to “elevate his social status up to that of a dog.” (Margulies p.87) Those treatments not only dehumanized but also left a severe psychological effect on him. Al Qahtani was later reported to show some “extreme psychological trauma (talking to non-existent people, reporting hearing voices, crouching in a cell covered with a sheet for hours on end).” (Margulies 86) During his time at Guantanamo Bay, Al Qahtani was also put in solitary confinement for up to thirty days and exposed to life-threatening environmental manipulations such as freezing temperatures. According to