Politics > Politics-USA > National Council Of Churches Calls For U.S. To Shut Down Guantanamo Prison, Asks "Who Would Jesus Torture?" - Says, "this chapter in our nation's history is a moral disgrace and must end."
| Topic: |
Politics > Politics-USA |
| User: |
"explorerthedog" |
| Date: |
05 Mar 2006 02:01:44 PM |
| Object: |
National Council Of Churches Calls For U.S. To Shut Down Guantanamo Prison, Asks "Who Would Jesus Torture?" - Says, "this chapter in our nation's history is a moral disgrace and must end." |
National Council Of Churches Calls For U.S. To Shut Down Guantanamo
Prison, Asks "Who Would Jesus Torture?"
Says, "this chapter in our nation's history is a moral disgrace and
must end."
In its letter of February 16 to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice,
the National Council Of Churches emphatically supports the United
Nations report of February 15 which recommends that, "the United States
Government should either expeditiously bring all Guantanamo Bay
detainees to trial, in compliance with articles 9(3) and 14 of ICCPR,
or release them without further delay." The letter also renews a
request to allow an interfaith delegation to go to Guantanamo to
monitor the physical, mental, and spiritual condition of the detainees.
And on its website, the Council now asks, "Who would Jesus torture?"
And it says that this chapter in our nation's history is a moral
disgrace and must end.
The complete text of this letter is shown below:
************************** beginning of letter ******************
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Rice,
I urge you to give serious personal attention to the report "Situation
of Detainees at Guantanamo Bay" that was issued on February 15 by the
Commission on Human Rights of the Economic and Social Council of the
United Nations.
We emphatically support the recommendation that, "the United States
Government should either expeditiously bring all Guantanamo Bay
detainees to trial, in compliance with articles 9(3) and 14 of ICCPR,
or release them without further delay".
We also support the recommendation that, "the United States Government
should close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility without further
delay."
And, as the report continues, "Until the closure, and possible transfer
of detainees to pre-trial detention facilities on United States
territory, the Government should refrain from any practice amounting to
torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,
discrimination on the basis of religion, and violations of the rights
to health and freedom of religion."
These recommendations are consistent with a February 23, 2004
resolution of the Executive Board of the National Council of Churches
of Christ in the USA, which states, "Our concern is based on the
fundamental Christian belief in the dignity of the human person created
in the image of God, and on the rights accorded all persons by virtue
of their humanity" ...and the belief "that indefinite detention of
persons without due process is a violation of their dignity and worth
as children of God."
We are deeply disturbed that a group with great international stature
has concluded after careful study that, "The interrogation techniques
authorized by the Department of Defense, particularly if used
simultaneously, amount to degrading treatment in violation of article 7
of ICCPR and article 16 of the Convention Against Torture" and that
"force feeding of detainees on hunger strike must be assessed a
mounting to torture as defined in article 1 of the Convention Against
Torture."
The response by Ambassador Edward Moley that seeks to discredit their
findings on the basis that the Special Rapporteurs rejected the
invitation to personally observe conditions at Guantanamo ignores well
established international practice that an investigation cannot be
conducted without private access to detainees.
In 2003 and 2004 the National Council of Churches requested and was
denied an opportunity to send a small interfaith delegation to
Guantanamo to monitor the physical, mental and spiritual condition of
the detainees.
Today we renew that request, not only for the benefit of the detainees
but for the benefit of the reputation of our country in an increasingly
skeptical world. Unless our government quickly allows independent
credible access to the detainees, the charges made in the UN report
will only take on greater weight.
Finally, we believe it is time for serious reconsideration of the
retention of U.S. presence on the territory of Cuba. The history of the
lease that was imposed on the Cubans in 1903, and the lack of any
strategic national interest in maintaining an American presence on
Cuban territory, contributes to negative views in which our country is
held in this hemisphere and worldwide.
Sincerely,
Robert W. Edgar
General Secretary
*********** end of letter ***************
Its website says, "The National Council of the Churches of Christ in
the USA has been the leading force for ecumenical cooperation among
Christians in the United States. The NCC's member faith groups -
representing a wide spectrum of Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox,
historic African American and Living Peace churches - include 45
million persons in more than 100,000 local congregations in communities
across the nation."
Sources: http://ga3.org/campaign/closeguantanamo and
http://www.ncccusa.org and related linked pages
Blessings to you. May God help us all.
Rev. Bill McGinnis, Director - LoveAllPeople.org
http://www.loveallpeople.org
Reference copy of this page at
http://www.patriot.net/users/bmcgin/closeguantanamo.txt
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| User: "Crusader" |
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| Title: Re: National Council Of Churches , a tool for the left |
05 Mar 2006 10:01:45 PM |
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"explorerthedog" <exp1943@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1141588903.998947.272450@i40g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
National Council Of Churches Calls For U.S. To Shut Down Guantanamo
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| User: "" |
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| Title: Re: National Council Of Churches Calls For U.S. To Shut Down Guantanamo Prison, Asks "Who Would Jesus Torture?" - Says, "this chapter in our nation's history is a moral disgrace and must end." |
05 Mar 2006 02:27:52 PM |
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So what response will we see? Will the NCC be denounced as leadinf the
War on Christmas? Or will they be denounced for being traitors and
islamofascists?
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| User: "" |
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| Title: Re: National Council Of Churches Calls For U.S. To Shut Down Guantanamo Prison, Asks "Who Would Jesus Torture?" - Says, "this chapter in our nation's history is a moral disgrace and must end." |
05 Mar 2006 02:27:54 PM |
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So what response will we see? Will the NCC be denounced as leadinf the
War on Christmas? Or will they be denounced for being traitors and
islamofascists?
.
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