LONDON, 27 May 2004 — The United States has proved “bankrupt of vision and bereft of principle” in its fight against terrorism and invasion of Iraq, Amnesty International charged yesterday. In its 2004 report on the state of human rights around the globe, the London-based group cited grave violations in dozens of other nations.
But it targeted in particular the “war on terror” initiated by US President George W. Bush in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001 for sanctioning human rights abuses in the name of freedom.
The unilateral nature of the conflict to unseat Saddam Hussein in Iraq had additionally “virtually paralyzed” the United Nations’ role in guaranteeing human rights on a global level, the Amnesty report said.
“The global security agenda promulgated by the US administration is bankrupt of vision and bereft of principle,” wrote Amnesty’s Secretary-General Irene Khan in the report’s introduction.
“Sacrificing human rights in the name of security at home, turning a blind eye to abuses abroad and using pre-emptive military force where and when it chooses have neither increased security nor ensured liberty.”
The notion of fighting a campaign against terrorism so as to support human rights, while simultaneously trampling on them to achieve this, was no more than “doublespeak”, she said.
“The United States has lost its moral high ground and its ability to lead on peace and human rights elsewhere,” Irene added at a press conference in London to launch the annual report.
However the White House flatly rejected the criticism, with spokesman Scott McClellan countering that the war on terror “has protected the human rights of some 25 million people in Afghanistan and some 25 million people in Iraq.”
The report also stated that events in 2003 had “dealt a mortal blow” to the UN’s vision of universal human rights, with the global body “virtually paralyzed in its efforts to hold states to account” over the issue.
“Not since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted in 1948 has there been such a sustained attack on (its) values and principles,” Irene told the press conference.
While the report only briefly dealt with damning allegations that US and British troops tortured Iraqi prisoners — these first came to light just last month — it had harsh words about the two nations’ overall record in Iraq.
In the Middle East, both Israel and the Palestinian Authority were taken to task, with Amnesty saying that some actions by the Israeli Army, such as the destruction of property, “constituted war crimes”.
