I attended the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing today on a “commission of inquiry” to examine Bush Administration policies governing detainee treatment.

Committee Chairman Senator Leahy (D-VT) introduced the hearing, stating:

We must not be afraid to look at what we have done, to hold ourselves accountable as we do other nations who make mistakes. We must understand that national security means protecting our country by advancing our laws and values, not discarding them.

Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) conceded that he wouldn’t mind looking back if there is a reason to do so, acknowledging that torture is a violation of our law. How many more reasons does Senator Specter need? Here is one: Susan Crawford, convening authority of the Guantanamo military commissions, stated in a recent Washington Post article that Mohammed al-Qahtani was tortured, citing the “medical impact” of the techniques used against him.

You think of torture, you think of some horrendous physical act done to an individual. This was not any one particular act; this was just a combination of things that had a medical impact on him, that hurt his health. It was abusive and uncalled for. And coercive. Clearly coercive. It was that medical impact that pushed me over the edge.

Consequently Crawford dropped the charges against al-Qahtani.

On a related note, in his testimony, John Farmer, who has served as a senior counsel and team leader for the 9/11 Commission, cautioned that the abusive tactics have compromised our ability to respond to 9/11. Frederick A. O. Schwarz, Jr., Senior Counsel from the Brennan Center for Justice, echoed that sentiment in his testimony, stating that it is necessary to find out whether abandoning the rule of law has made us less safe. In his testimony before the Committee in support of a commission, Retired Vice Admiral Lee Gunn emphasized the problems Bush policies have created for our servicemen and women.

PHR believes that the integrity of military medical ethics must be restored by pursuing a thorough review and implementing guidelines that uphold medical ethics. In the statement we submitted for the record in today's hearing (PDF), we emphasized that

In addition to determining how health professionals came to be placed in harmful roles, the Commission needs to recommend that effective guidelines be put in place to ensure that such a gross subversion of medical ethics cannot be repeated. The Defense Department continues to mandate that health professionals play a major role in interrogations, through its Behavioral Science Consultant teams. This is ethically inappropriate. By helping interrogators determine when to push harder to get detainees to reveal information, health professionals abandon their role as healers and become instead advisors on calibrating harm. Psychologists and psychiatrists should be limited to training personnel in non-coercive rapport-building interrogation techniques…

The enormous prestige of the health professions in this country was earned over many decades, in part by adherence to a strict set of ethical standards. The participation of some health professionals in ethically disturbing and even criminal behavior while engaged with the national security apparatus serve to erode that high standing, especially if their actions are not investigated and corrected. The medical and health professions as a whole have a responsibility to support a national commission that will move toward a restoration of the highest moral and ethical standards, rooted in the respect for human dignity.

Senator Specter cautioned against criminalizing policy differences. That distorted rhetoric must be rejected. The authorization of torture is not a policy difference; the legal prohibition against torture is absolute and unequivocal. Exploitation of the law to conform to policy warrants an investigation.

In discussing the Office of Legal Counsel memos released earlier this week authorizing interrogations that violate human rights, Senator Leahy said, “How can anyone suggest that such policies do not deserve a thorough, objective review?”

The American people and the victims of abuse deserve the truth; the wrongs of the past must be uncovered, addressed and prevented from recurring.

Please help make a commission of inquiry a reality by signing the PHR petition in support of a bipartisan commission.

If you've already signed the petition help us get 10,000 signatures by sending it to six of your friends.

The US Department of State released this week its human rights report card for 194 countries and territories, which it has submitted annually to the US Congress in compliance with the federal Foreign Assistance Act (PDF) since 1977.

It took a whopping 26,000 words to describe the Mugabe regime's "pervasive and systematic abuse of human rights" during 2008.

You'd think the State Department's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, which wrote the tome, would address most if not all of the rights enshrined in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But that's not the case.

As part of the PHR delegation who traveled to Zimbabwe to investigate Mugabe's immiseration of the health sector in December 2008, I was eager to read the State Department's report and compare findings. What? Not one paragraph devoted to violations of the right to health in Zimbabwe? The 2008 collapse of the health sector in Zimbabwe was unprecedented in scale and scope, and the State Department didn't address it?!

This dearth of information should in no way imply the counter-factual position that Mugabe's ZANU-PF regime respects and protects the right to health. In fact, the PHR delegation found that the health crisis in Zimbabwe is a direct outcome of the malfeasance of the ZANU-PF government and the systematic violation of a wide range of human rights—not just civil and political rights, which the US State Department details.

PHR documented violations of

• the right to life due to:
• uncontrolled cholera epidemic
• cessation and obstruction of humanitarian aid
• lack of access to emergency obstetric care
• changes in ARV regimens
• the prohibition against torture:
• widespread ZANU-PF policy of torture, intimidation, kidnappings and other inhuman and degrading treatment
• core obligations of the rights to health, water, and food such as:
  • denial of equal access to health services on a non-discriminatory basis directly following from the dollarization of the health sector
  • denial of access to medicines
  • denial of access to safe water and adequate sanitation
  • denial of minimum essential food that is nutritionally adequate

Perhaps Secretary of State Clinton will conduct a more thorough assessment of human rights violations when reporting to Congress next year.

On Tuesday, Salon.com's Mark Benjamin reported that US Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) is moving forward with with a commission to investigate torture during the Bush administration.

Committee Chairman Pat Leahy, D-Vt., told Salon Tuesday that his panel would soon announce a hearing to study various commission plans. His staff said the announcement could come as early as Wednesday.

Yesterday, on Wednesday, Leahy did, in fact, schedule a hearing on commission plans, so the work on forming a commission is proceeding apace. Senator Leahy's strongest Senate ally in the call for a torture commission is Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)—whose first public announcement of support for a torture commission was at PHR's National Student Conference earlier this month.

"As a member of both the Judiciary Committee and the Intelligence Committee," Benjamin reported,

Whitehouse is privy to information about interrogations he can't yet share. Still, regarding a potential torture commission, he told Salon, "I am convinced it is going to happen." In fact, his fervor on the issue was palpable. When asked if there is a lot the public still does not know about these issues during the Bush administration, his eyes grew large and he nodded slowly. "Stay on this," he said. "This is going to be big."

Though President Obama has expressed some hesitation over the idea of a commission, Whitehouse is confident that the President will come around.

Besides, he said, "When push comes to shove, we are the legislative branch of government. We have oversight responsibilities. And we don't need the executive branch's approval to look into these things just as a constitutional matter."

PHR members have played a major role in bringing a commission this close to reality, and we will be calling on members for help as we work to shape the commission to include medical complicity and a focus on the victims of torture.

At the PHR National Student Conference at Brown University, on February 1, 2009, PHR CEO Frank Donaghue gave US Senator Sheldon Whitehouse postcards from PHR students, asking Congress to establish a commission to fully investigate and publically report on US torture.

 

Ben Greenberg/PHR

We are in regular contact with Leahy and Whitehouse staffers and will be active participants in the process going forward.

Further Reading

• Floor Statements by Senators Leahy and Whitehouse, 2/25/09
• Torture Commission Coming Soon (Meteor Blades, Daily Kos)
• Why a war crimes fact-finding commission could uniquely enable prosecutions (Glenn Greenwald, Salon.com)

I'm happy to share with you the newly released special Health Action AIDS edition of The Record, PHR's print newsletter. It's been a busy year for the HAA team, traveling throughout the country and across continents to mobilize health professionals in the global fight against AIDS. Please download the newsletter (PDF) to read about our journey as we met so many of you throughout the past year.

Congresswoman Barbara Lee and HAA staff at the XVII International AIDS Conference, Mexico City.

I am continually inspired by the advocates who help us do our work, and I am especially proud of the work highlighted in the cover story of this edition—"PHR Played Key Role in Strengthening PEPFAR."

With your help, we successfully advocated for critical improvements in the new PEPFAR bill, including an increase in the authorized funding level from $15 billion to $48 billion, a provision for the training and retaining of 140,000 new professional health workers and the removal of the statutory travel ban language for HIV-positive individuals, which is a critical step to removing the ban completely.

While the bill is not everything we had hoped, the successful advocacy of health professionals is encouraging as we continue to rise to the challenges that lie ahead.

You will also find stories on HAA events and activities throughout the country, our work with East African partners to advance the right to health and spotlights on harm reduction, health workforce advocacy and PHR's student program. Dr. Eric Goosby, HAA advisor and CEO of the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, offers insights on the status of the fight against global AIDS and Frank Donaghue, PHR's CEO, introduces you to Dr. Helen Potts who joins the team as our new Chief Program Officer for Health.

Take a look at the newsletter and keep checking the PHR blog to stay updated on exciting HAA activities in the coming month!

President Obama began his presidency by repudiating the Bush Administration's torture policies. On the heels of this decisive step, there is an opportunity for the US to lead again. America can demonstrate to the world that the US not only condemns policies that sanction torture and cruelty, but also strongly affirms the importance of supporting programs geared towards healing survivors of torture.

Caring for survivors of politically motivated torture is crucial to advancing human rights and building democratic societies. The opportunity to demonstrate America's commitment to healing the wounds of torture, as a core national value, is presented through the Torture Victims Relief Act (TVRA).

TVRA authorizes funds that finance US-based and international rehabilitation programs for torture survivors. With funding for torture survivor rehabilitation centers remaining stagnant for several years, the demand for services has vastly exceeded resources, causing several programs to close or drastically scale back services and report long wait lists.

Through investing in these programs, domestically and internationally, the US can demonstrate a commitment to heal the wounds of torture and help survivors reclaim their lives. By ensuring that these programs remain strong and serve the individuals and families who rely on their services, we will help to restore America's moral leadership.

Here is a sample script for your call (below the fold). Feel free to add personal and professional details when you call.

To reach your Senators and Congressperson, call the Congressional Switch board at 202 224 3121 and ask to be connected to your representatives. Not sure who they are? Look it up here!

• Sample script for calling your Member of Congress TODAY Tuesday, February 24th:
• Introduce yourself and mention that you're from the member's district or state.
• Inform the staff member you are speaking with that you would like your member to co-sponsor the Torture Victims Relief Act (TVRA), which authorizes funds for torture treatment programs in the US and abroad to help torture victims rebuild productive lives.
• Since TVRA does not have a bill number yet, tell your member to be an original co-sponsor of TVRA -for House members they should email Rep. Smith (R-NJ) or Rep. Oberstar (D-MN); and for Senate members they should email Sen. Klobuchar (D-MN)
• Let them know that the United States is home to approximately 500,000 torture survivors who have fled societies where torture was used to destroy democracy and civil society.
• Caring for survivors of politically motivated torture is crucial to advancing human rights and building strong democratic societies.
• For several years, funding for torture rehabilitation centers has remained stagnant. Several treatment centers have been forced to close or drastically scale back services, and those that remain open report long waiting lists for services. Co-sponsoring TVRA can help change this.

Your voice will ensure Congress knows how critical support of TVRA is to the torture survivors who receive care at 35 programs in the US and at nearly 200 centers in 70 countries around the world. Thanks for taking action!

Zimbabwe's economy is in ruins. Disease runs rampant. The public health system has collapsed. Private health care is all that remains, and in a country where many workers make less than $1 per month, a simple medical consultation starts at $200–that's more than 15 years of income for most! In our new video, PHR examines how Zimbabwe's economic crisis has shattered a once-strong health system.

The Zimbabwean dollar has become so worthless, most goods and services can only be bought with US dollars. Yet, many workers are still being paid in Zimbabwean currency. For them, a month's earnings can't even buy a loaf of bread! At the same time, private health care is the only viable health care option left in the country, since all public hospitals are closed and mission hospitals are overcrowded and underfunded. Private care, however, costs an astronomical amount by Zimbabwean standards, making it available only to the wealthy and privileged few.American or Zimbabwean, these days, everyone understands the issue of unaffordable health care in a depressed economy. But the situation in Zimbabwe represents the most extreme, worst-case scenario.In a country riddled with epidemic diseases, the last thing residents need is unaffordable health care. Health is a universal right—it has no price tag.(Watch this video in HD)

Just take a look at Zimbabwe, which until recently was one of Africa’s leading agricultural producers. In fact, agriculture contributed to 45% of Zimbabwe’s export earnings and provided livelihood to more than 70% of the population. Tragically, more than seven million Zimbabweans today rely on food assistance, according to the UN World Food Program.

How did this phenomenal collapse happen so quickly, rendering Zimbabwe the ignominious distinction of becoming the first failed state without a war to blame? Land reform.

In April 2000, the ZANU-PF-controlled parliament approved amending the Zimbabwe Constitution to establish a legal framework for land acquisition. Mugabe quickly mobilized some 35,000 war veterans and unemployed youth militia and ordered them to begin expropriating white-owned farms while brutally assaulting and sometimes murdering the commercial farmers and farm workers.

The Government claims “that restoring land to the landless majority was right and necessary”. But under the guise of land redistribution to benefit landless black Zimbabweans, Mugabe instead awarded many of these once productive farms to government ministers and other ZANU-PF supporters for their patronage. Many of these farmlands now remain fallow and serve as nothing more than second homes to these non-farming cronies, including Zimbabwe’s First Shopper, Grace Mugabe.

The land seizure led to a 70% fall in agricultural production, and precipitated the collapse of the economy. In fact Zimbabwe’s economy is so bad, one needs to employ scientific notation (remember general chemistry?) to comprehend the rate of inflation – estimated to be 89.7 x 10²¹% – otherwise known as 89.7 sextillion percent!

Zimbabwe’s new Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai sure has his work cut out for him, especially by promising that “every health worker, teacher, soldier and policeman will receive their pay in foreign currency until we are able to stabilize the economy.”

Last week Major General Antonio Taguba (US Army, Ret.) joined PHR and a bipartisan group of civil society groups and national security experts, including Judge William Sessions, the former Director of the FBI, in calling for a national commission to investigate the torture of detainees by US personnel.

General Taguba, the head of the US Army's investigation into the Abu Ghraib scandal, and the author of the preface to PHR's landmark report, Broken Laws, Broken Lives: Medical Evidence of Torture by US Personnel and its Impact, spoke to Salon.com about why he supports accountability for detainee abuse:

This is not a political issue, but a moral and ethical dilemma which has far-reaching implications…. We have future generations who will be the beneficiaries of these actions. We have a lot of unanswered questions on accountability, questions that need to be answered … We have an integrity issue to contend with if we are to prevent this matter from recurring.

Join with PHR's Campaign Against Torture in the weeks and months ahead as we work to ensure that the full history of the Bush Administration's detainee treatment policies are known, perpetrators are held to account and survivors receive compensation and psycho-social assistance. PHR will also continue to be the leading voice calling for full disclosure of, and accountability for, violations of medical ethics committed by US health professionals involved in the torture and abuse of detainees.

We would like your feedback to ensure that the Health Action AIDS campaign continues to grow and build on our many successes. If you have been receiving Health Action AIDS Campaign emails or participate in the program in other ways, please take 5-7 minutes and share your thoughts with us by taking this online survey.

This survey will help us better understand the impact of the campaign thus far and illuminate new possibilities for the future.

As we move forward in the coming months and years, we will use your responses to inform PHR priorities and continue to find innovative strategies to succeed in our advocacy. We will be evaluating results next month, so your timely responses by an extended deadline of February 28 are much appreciated.

Help us by taking 5-7 minutes to participate in our survey.

Rwandan children at a soccer field in Kigali, Rwanda. Emily Bancroft for PHR.

Emily Bancroft, Senior Coordinator of PHR's Health Action AIDS program, has spent the last month working in Rwanda. Emily has reported in the Boston Globe's Passport blog on some of her work with Rwandan children, teens and young adults who have AIDS.

KIGALI, Rwanda — On the edges of a dusty soccer field that looks across the green hills of the capital city of Kigali in Rwanda, more than 200 children and teenagers laugh and play. Some of the younger kids form a circle and sing, while the middle ones play tag. The oldest sit on the steps talking seriously. After an hour, the kids gather for milk, bread, and bananas.They look like any group of kids in any neighborhood in the world. You would never know that all of them are living with HIV/AIDS. You would never know that they came from over all over the city in order to be together on a Sunday.

Despite its tumultuous history in health and human rights, Rwanda is now a leader in HIV treatment compared to its neighbors. According to the government, over 60 percent of patients needing antiretroviral medications (ARVs) are on them. Comparatively, the average uptake of ARVs is 25 percent in the rest of sub-Saharan Africa.

Emily also worked with Dr. Mardge Cohen, a longtime supporter of PHR. Dr. Cohen was one of the founders of WE-ACTx (Women's Equity in Access to Care and Treatment), which supports more than 3,000 women and children on HIV treatment.

Read the rest of Emily's blog post at the Passport blog.