'Contract interrogators hired to avoid supervision'

[ze_dscherman]

Several high-ranking military legal officers believe the Pentagon used private contractors to interrogate prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan in a deliberate attempt to obscure aggressive practices from congressional or military oversight, according to a civilian lawyer who has spoken with them.


The civilian lawyer said that the military lawyers, part of the Judge Advocate General corps, complained to him about the use of private contractors during meetings last year, before the scandal over abuses at the Abu Ghraib prison became public.

"They believed that there was a conscious effort to create an atmosphere of ambiguity, of having people involved who couldn't be held to account," he said.

SNIP

A Pentagon spokesman denied that contractors were used for reasons of secrecy, and said they were held to the same standard as regular military intelligence: "The regulations - both Geneva and otherwise - apply the same exact way to the contractors as they do to uniform personnel."

More: http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1084907716218&p=1012571727102

[davhill]

1. Public contractors

Why do we keep on calling CIA spooks who happen to be using a private company as a thin cover "private contractors"? They are Federal employees and should be treated as such.

[seemslikeadream]

2. civilian police contractor job - Haiti

Albany police boss accepts Haiti detail
Albany-- 32-year veteran John Nielsen to join U.S. mission to restore police security in nation

By BRENDAN LYONS, Staff writer
First published: Friday, May 21, 2004

John C. Nielsen, the city's top cop for the past five years, has accepted a civilian police contractor job helping guide U.S. reform efforts ongoing in Haiti.
Nielsen, who will work for a private company under contract with the U.S. Department of State, flew the globe over the past week in a whirlwind tour of troubled areas in Europe and the Caribbean. He decided on the Haiti job, he said, because of the unique security challenges in the small nation that has been ripped by corruption and political strife.

"In the last week I've been all over the world, but Haiti is the one that interests me the most," Nielsen said. "I think the appropriate State Department language is 'standing up' of the Haitian National Police, which basically means getting them back on their feet. Haiti has no army, so the police are expected to handle most of their internal defense issues."

Haiti has been highly unstable since a revolt in February, when former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled the country. The nation's infrastructure also is in tatters, and basic services like water and power are spotty.

"We're giving advice ... on security issues, establishing a police force and all aspects of that," Nielsen said. "They've got a national police force, but they have the same issues there, from a need for community policing to issues with their own internal affairs."

http://www.timesunion.com/aspstories/story.asp?storyID=250132

[Corgigal]

3. Outsourcing

the military in anything was a bad idea. The cooks should be military up to the MP's. They represent the ole USA and are accountable as such. These civilians only reflect on some corporation who can bankrupt and disappear into the wind on a moments notice. Of course the victims of the countries don't give a damn about that, they see it as America.

Of course this administration wanted this done. They could give kick backs to their buddies and throw away the Geneva Convention at the same time. I'm sure America is much safer because of the way this administration conducted themselves.