Pentagon Stonewalls ACLU - VCS Request for Iraq War Torture Documents

Documents released last week by the American Civil Liberties Union reveal that the Pentagon refused to expedite a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, filed seven months ago, for documents related to the abuse and possible torture of U.S.-held detainees. 

The FOIA request was filed in October 2003 by the ACLU and four other
organizations: the Center for Constitutional Rights, Physicians for Human
Rights, Veterans for Common Sense, and Veterans for Peace.  Full compliance with the request would have required the Defense Department to release records
related to the emerging scandal at Abu Ghraib.  The petitioners are currently
considering litigation to force compliance with the request.

The Pentagon has twice rejected the ACLU's call for "expedited processing"
claiming that the subject matter of the request was not "breaking news" and that
there was no "compelling need" for the immediate release of information about
the mistreatment of detainees.  The Defense Department also claimed that
expediting the request was unnecessary because failure to expedite would not
"endanger the life or safety of any individual."

"The Defense Department's stonewalling is absolutely unacceptable, particularly
in light of the fact that mistreatment and abuse of detainees appears to have
been systemic," said Jameel Jaffer, an ACLU staff attorney.  "The American
public has a right to know what's being done in its name."

Release of the FOIA documents comes several days after the ACLU submitted a
letter to President Bush saying that the Abu Ghraib debacle was a "predictable
result" of American detention policies in the war on terrorism that routinely
flout the rule of law and American values.

Read the ACLU's letter to President Bush regarding the abuses at Abu Ghraib:
http://www.aclu.org/SafeandFree/SafeandFree.cfm?ID=15677&c=206&MX=1248&H=0

Further information on the ACLU's FOIA request, including the newly released
documents can be found at:
http://www.aclu.org/International/International.cfm?ID=13962&c=36&MX=1248&H=0

TAKE ACTION:  URGE PRESIDENT BUSH TO REFORM AMERICAN DETENTION POLICIES!

Send a FREE e-mail to President Bush urging him to ensure American detention
policies are in compliance with both U.S. and international laws and to
investigate the abuses at Abu Ghraib in an impartial and transparent manner:
http://www.aclu.org/International/International.cfm?ID=15718&c=36&MX=1248&H=0