Amnesty International has just filed a report citing the ongoing use of interrogation tactics by the government of the United States that would be labeled “cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment” under any reasonable definition.

“Although the US government continues to assert its condemnation of torture and ill-treatment, these statements contradict what is happening in practice,” said Curt Goering, Senior Deputy Executive Director Of Amnesty International USA. “The US government is not only failing to take steps to eradicate torture it is actually creating a climate in which torture and other ill-treatment can flourish — including by trying to narrow the definition of torture …

“The heaviest sentence imposed on anyone to date for a torture-related death while in US custody is five months — the same sentence that you might receive in the US for stealing a bicycle. In this case, the five-month sentence was for assaulting a 22-year-old taxi-driver who was hooded and chained to a ceiling while being kicked and beaten until he died.”

We must enforce the laws which define us as a law-abiding state. We must enforce the recently-enacted ban on torture by any agent of the US government, anytime, anywhere. We must not look the other way! We must not place blind and unquestioning trust in our leaders, empowering them to do whatever they have to do to keep us safe. We cannot defeat terrorism by terrorism.

We must not look the other way, and we must not be silent.