OP-ED: We Should All Know About Torture

by Brianne Recker

THE SENATE Intelligence Committee’s report on CIA torture that was released this past December presented extremely disturbing mental images of torture techniques to those who read the report. Included were accounts of waterboarding, horrific sleep deprivation, and “rectal rehydration.” Just the thought of these methods is sickening.

There is no way to know for certain the number of people that read the report and were compelled by it, nor the general reactions of individuals. Nevertheless, the recent CIA torture report was a pivotal move in changing the current societal status of the acceptance of torture to a widespread opinion of condemnation and disapproval.

The first step in the outright abolition of torture must be to create a world in which torture is not seen as tolerable under any circumstances. In his recent lecture on the abolition of torture, Juan Mendez, the current United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, emphasized the notion that it is very foreseeable for us to achieve the pre-9/11 outlook that was much less accepting of torture. However, he states that this is only possible if we take proactive steps towards changing the viewpoint of torture in the eyes of the citizens, governments, and the international community. He also stressed the importance of increasing the visibility of hidden forms of torture—the way to do this is to create complete transparency with the public regarding current instances and methods of torture.

However, this supportive view of transparency is not universally accepted. Following the release of the December 2014 CIA torture report, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas released a statement condemning the decision to release this information. He stated that the report could “endanger lives, drive away our allies… and undermine the ability of our intelligence officers and soldiers to protect our national security.”

But this opinion ignores a crucial consideration. By concealing a nation’s acts of torture, the prospect of abolishing torture is lost. Individuals like Cruz condemn the transparency of torture reports because they feel the need to find some justification for torturing and concealing this torture from a public that deserves to be informed of it.

The Editorial Board of the New York Times puts it perfectly in their piece on the concealment of American torture when they speak to the idea that it is not the release of evidence of torture that is detrimental, but rather the fact that this torture is even occurring in the first place. Without reports that reveal the horrific torture techniques used by our government officials, the lack of accountability for cruel actions would only further the use of unregulated torture techniques by countries.

In a journal article published in the Social Issues and Policy Review, Mark Costanzo and Ellen Gerrity cite a finding supported by many scholars and historians. This finding is the unnerving fact that the use of torture is difficult to contain, and once it begins, it is very hard to control. The danger in concealing the acts of torture committed by a state is that the state is no longer held accountable for its actions, causing a complete lack of regulation of any and all torturous acts.

After revealing the very concerning methods of torture that have been carried out, the public is better able to comprehend what happens when a subject is interrogated rather than having some vague idea about the mere concept of torture. Putting a mental image to a term creates so much more sympathy towards a victim of torture. This type of sympathy is a necessary step in changing perceptions and opinions of torture.

Italian Enlightenment thinker Cesare Beccaria writes in his “Treatise on Crimes and Punishment,” published in 1764, that punishment is only acceptable when absolutely necessary. Because of the lack of benefits derived from the CIA torture program, these punishments were by no means absolutely necessary. The cruelties inflicted by CIA and government officials are not something that should be hidden from the citizens of a democratic republic. The only way to reveal the accounts of this inhuman punishment is through facilitating a policy of openness to address torture techniques, such as this past December’s CIA report.

If we ever want to fully abolish torture, we must first be able to comprehend and humanize the brutalities that torture entails. So for the goal of abolishing torture to become a reality, our government must never fail to maintain the policy of absolute transparency with the public regarding torture.

Brianne Recker is a 19-year-old student at the University of Michigan. She is studying International Studies and Spanish and hopes to eventually attend law school. She is originally from West Bloomfield, Michigan, but she is proud to call Ann Arbor her home.