Dignity, Freedom and Security in the United States by Amnesty International USA 2:11pm 18th Jan, 2004   16.01.2004.    The President will soon stand before Congress and address the nation in the annual tradition known as the State of the Union, fulfilling his obligation to the U.S. Constitution requiring him to brief Congress periodically. This comes at a time when many are concerned about the Bush administration’s policies and their effect on both Constitutional guarantees and fundamental human rights. The President will undoubtedly speak of the state of security in the nation and of the success of our security forces abroad, of missions accomplished and missions yet to be completed, and of issues of justice for those responsible for terrorist and torturous acts. The United States and all governments have a responsibility to protect their citizens against terrorism and human rights abuses. One of the best ways to accomplish this important task in the near and longterm is to uphold, promote, and defend human rights principles. As the President reports on the “war on terror,” many of us are asking whether U.S. policies are promoting human rights and whether they are just and contributing to a more secure world.    While the President speaks of the liberation of the Iraqi people from the oppressive regime of Saddam Hussein, U.S. courts are preparing to decide whether to uphold or defeat the Bush administration policies that hold US citizens indefinitely without charge or access to a lawyer, and that hold hundreds of men and boys in Guantanamo Bay without legal status, denied basic protections guaranteed under international human rights laws. Is this justice and does it build a more secure world?    The President will highlight the capture of Saddam Hussein as an end to a long era of torture, executions, and severe repression in Iraq. At the same time the President denounces torture, the United States is the focus of numerous reports alleging use of ill-treatment and even torture against detainees in military facilities abroad and in prisons at home. Also in the name of the “war on terror,” the United States has sent and deported individuals to countries where they were tortured, including the case of one Canadian who was detained at a U.S. airport, forcibly deported to Jordan and then sent to Syria where he was tortured before finally being released and allowed to return to his family in Canada. Is this justice and does it build a more secure world?    The United States has rolled back fundamental protections afforded in the US Constitution and enshrined in international human rights law and treaties, and it is continuing this trend. Building on the USA PATRIOT Act, Congress has widely expanded the types of businesses that the FBI can serve national security letters to, gathering information without requiring even perfunctory review and approval by a judge. Congress has introduced the CLEAR Act and the VICTORY Act, furthering a trend of diminishing restrictions on law enforcement’s ability to monitor and detain citizens and non-citizens, and increasing the concentration of power in the Executive branch without appropriate safeguards. Is this justice and does it build a more secure world?    The President will highlight his plans to provide temporary amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants, without mentioning the severely discriminatory policies of racially profiling individuals of Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian background, subjecting many to longterm detention, denying them access to lawyers, and deporting others who have lived in and contributed to this country with their families for years. Is this justice and does it build a more secure world?    The U.S. is among only a handful of nations that still execute juvenile offenders and is responsible for 19 of the 34 juvenile offender executions in the world since 1990. Four juvenile offenders were executed in the United States between 2002 and 2003 – in the rest of the world, China was the only other government known to have executed one juvenile offender. Virtually every country in the world has eliminated the death penalty for juvenile offenders and more than half the nations of the world have abolished the death penalty altogether. In the face of growing recognition of the flaws in capital punishment, the U.S. has released from death row 112 people since 1973 due to evidence of their wrongful conviction. Many endured decades of wrongful imprisonment, and others even less fortunate were executed though there is strong evidence now that they may have been innocent. Is this justice and does it build a more secure world?    Pressing demands for security in the context of the “war on terror” means a proliferation of security assistance to countries that are new allies, despite their extremely poor human rights records. It also means that the range of new security technologies is developing rapidly, often without regulation. And it means that the Department of Commerce is continuing to license the export and sale of electronic shock equipment and other devices that can be used to torture prisoners, suspects, protestors and dissidents – some of this equipment is authorized to go to countries cited by Department of State for their records of committing torture. Is this justice and does it build a more secure world?    Many have argued that the undoing of valued liberties is a small price to pay in the name of security. However, countries can and have protected themselves without sacrificing the fundamental principles of justice and human dignity that are enumerated in the U.S. Constitution and international human rights law and treaties. As this country pauses to reflect on the State of the Union that was 2003, we must assess whether the U.S. will continue on the path of trading liberty for security or if we are going to be a nation of leaders who will work within the community of nations to uphold fundamental human rights in both word and deed.    On January 20, 2004, members of Amnesty International USA, a grassroots activist organization with more than 350,000 members nationwide, is launching a campaign to call for policies that are just and build a more secure world. Amnesty International members across the country are holding events and calling the White House to urge President Bush to lead by example and hold himself and his administration to the highest standards for human dignity and freedom. Visit the related web page
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