Gen. Pace: we have obligation to stop torture;Rumsfeld was perplexed.

[dajoki]

Village Voice
http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0550,schanberg,70934,6.html

The Moral High Ground
Welcome to Bushland, but first put on your wading boots

by Sydney H. Schanberg
December 13th, 2005 11:22

A naughty burlesque troupe made its way across Europe this past week, astonishing packed houses with its signature ballad, "Not U.S.—We Never Pull Fingernails." "Incroyable!" cried the French press. "Unglaublich!" echoed the Germans. Here in the U.S., the captive American masses, who have been endlessly battered by the song, simply stood hunched over, their hands clapped over their ears, as they rasped: "Just turn off the music. We'll confess."

Condoleezza Rice was the leader of the above-satirized European propaganda tour. Her face in poker mode, the secretary of state pledged that "the United States does not permit, tolerate, or condone torture under any circumstances."

To some, her vow seemed odd, since just a week earlier, at a Pentagon press briefing, Donald Rumsfeld offered a different take on torture—or tried to. When asked what is required of American troops if the American-trained Iraqi troops should torture prisoners, the secretary of defense, one of the architects of the Iraq war, said that "obviously, the United States does not have a responsibility when a sovereign country engages in something disapprove of. However, we do have a responsibility to say so . . ."

At Rumsfeld's side, General Peter Pace, the newly installed chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was quick to correct him. The general said: "It is the absolute responsibility of every U.S. service member, if they see inhumane treatment being conducted, to intervene, to stop it." Rumsfeld was perplexed. Addressing Pace, he said, "But I don't think you mean they have an obligation to physically stop it; it's to report it." Pace was patient but firm: "If they are physically present when inhumane treatment is taking place, sir, they have an obligation to try to stop it." (A thank you here to The Washington Post's Dana Milbank for his account on November 30, page A18.)

So, which is it? Do American forces or intelligence officials torture some prisoners or don't they?