Abstract
In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US, the government authorized the use of "enhanced interrogation" techniques that were previously recognized as torture. While the complicity of US health professionals in the design and implementation of US torture practices has been documented, little is known about the role of health providers, assigned to the US Department of Defense (DoD) at the US Naval Station Guantánamo Bay, Cuba (GTMO), who should have been in a position to observe and document physical and psychological evidence of torture and ill treatment. We reviewed GTMO medical records and relevant case files (client affidavits, attorney-client notes and summaries, and legal affidavits of medical experts) of nine individuals for evidence of torture and ill treatment and documentation by medical personnel. In each of the nine cases, GTMO detainees alleged abusive interrogation methods that are consistent with torture as defined by the UN Convention Against Torture as well as the more restrictive US definition of torture that was operational at the time. The medical affidavits in each of the nine cases indicate that the specific allegations of torture and ill treatment are highly consistent with physical and psychological evidence documented in the medical records and evaluations by non-governmental medical experts. However, the medical personnel who treated the detainees at GTMO failed to inquire and/or document causes of the physical injuries and psychological symptoms they observed. Psychological symptoms were commonly attributed to "personality disorders" and "routine stressors of confinement." Temporary psychotic symptoms and hallucinations did not prompt consideration of abusive treatment. Psychological assessments conducted by non-governmental medical experts revealed diagnostic criteria for current major depression and/or PTSD in all nine cases. The findings in these nine cases from GTMO indicate that medical doctors and mental health personnel assigned to the DoD neglected and/or concealed medical evidence of intentional harm.
Highlights
Despite international recognition of torture as a crime that can never be justified [1,2], the United States government in August 2002 redefined acts such as ‘‘waterboarding’’, forced nudity, sleep deprivation, temperature extremes, stress positions, and prolonged isolation to be ‘‘safe, legal, ethical, and effective’’ ‘‘enhanced interrogation’’ techniques (EITs) after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US
The findings in these nine cases from GTMO indicate that medical doctors and mental health personnel assigned to the Department of Defense (DoD) neglected and/or concealed medical evidence of intentional harm
Recent release of previously classified US documents [5,6,7,8] and non-governmental publications [9,10,11] have demonstrated that physicians and other medical personnel played a critical role in the design and implementation of US torture practices
Summary
Despite international recognition of torture as a crime that can never be justified [1,2], the United States government in August 2002 redefined acts such as ‘‘waterboarding’’ (simulated drowning), forced nudity, sleep deprivation, temperature extremes, stress positions, and prolonged isolation to be ‘‘safe, legal, ethical, and effective’’ ‘‘enhanced interrogation’’ techniques (EITs) after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US. Article 5 of the United Nations (UN) Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted in December 1948, states: ‘‘No one should be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.’’ signatories of the Geneva Conventions, which provide protection for people who fall into enemy hands during conflicts, have agreed not to torture prisoners. Torture is prohibited by the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which came into force in June 1987. Implementation of this Convention by participating states is monitored the UN Committee against Torture
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