**Please circulate widely to friends and on social-networking sites*
Bush
Feared Prosecution for War Crimes
In 2002, Gonzales urged
Bush to protect them against "domestic criminal prosecution"
![JUNE 25]()
Torture Accountability
Action Day in D.C.
11am-12noon: Rally in John Marshall Park
(501 Pennsylvania Ave. NW)
12 noon: March to U.S. Department of Justice
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Because of the immense pressure brought by the Indict Bush movement,
new revelations continue to come forth.
The Bush administration lied about the reason it decided to deprive
detainees of Geneva Convention rights and protections. The real reason
was that Bush and his lawyer decided that it was the best way to
protect the President and other officials from criminal prosecution.
Please continue to
support the work of the IndictBushNow movement by making a much-needed
donation.
On January 11, 2002, the United States announced that it was refusing
to abide by the 1949 Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners of
war. The Third Geneva Convention, which provides specific guidelines
for treatment of prisoner combatants, is a part of the "law of nations"
and is a mainstay of international humanitarian law. The United States
explained that the prisoners taken in Afghanistan and Pakistan were not
actually prisoners of war, but were in fact "unlawful combatants."
The Bush administration always knew its programs were illegal and that
they could be prosecuted for them. In January 2002, then-White House
Counsel Alberto Gonzales advised Bush to deny prisoners of war
protections under the Geneva Conventions. Doing so, Gonzales argued,
"substantially reduces the threat of domestic criminal prosecution
under the War Crimes Act" and "provides a solid defense to any future
prosecution."
Bush's decision to end Geneva Convention protections sent a message
to the U.S. military and intelligence services to commit war crimes. It
was a decision that shocked many, including those within the military
who rely on those protections for their own personnel.
Now, Bush is gone. There is a new president and a new attorney general.
We could never expect justice from Bush's Department of Justice, but
now we have the chance to make Bush's and Gonzales' worst nightmare -
"future prosecution" - come true.
Please take a moment
right now and send a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder
demanding immediate investigation and prosecution.
Bush officials, in their supreme arrogance, believed they could just
annul the laws they didn't like - that this would "provide a solid
defense" when they left office.
It is our obligation in
defense of the Constitution and fundamental principles of human rights
to ensure they are held accountable.
Crucifixion
in Iraq
The torture program that Bush set in motion has claimed untold lives.
On November 4, 2003, an Iraqi prisoner named Manadel al-Jamadi died of
asphyxiation while being interrogated by the CIA. "A forensic examiner
found that he had essentially been crucified; he died from asphyxiation
after having been hung by his arms, in a hood, and suffering broken
ribs," the New Yorker reports.
The Department of Justice has long known about the ghastly death of Mr.
al-Jamadi, as well as other war crimes and human rights violations
committed against detainees in U.S. custody. But they have failed to
prosecute, fearing that new torture revelations will inevitably
implicate the government's top brass, including the officials of the
Bush administration.
Taking
it to the Streets
The indictment movement is also moving full steam ahead supporting a
June 25 rally in Washington, D.C., as part of an international Torture
Accountability Action Day. We are meeting at John Marshall Park (501
Pennsylvania Ave. NW) for a rally from 11am to 12noon, and then
marching to the U.S. Department of Justice.
--From all of us at IndictBushNow.org
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