The fact that President Obama not only ended the CIA secret detention program, but has also publicly acknowledged that torture was a part of it, is to be welcomed. Nevertheless, the President once again failed to say that torture is a crime under international law, that every instance must be subjected to investigation and that anyone responsible for it must be brought to justice. President Obama’s silence on accountability and redress reflects the USA’s continuing and active failure to meet its international human rights obligations on these issues.
Index Number: AMR 51/046/2014