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Muslim Affairs Page
Answer
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Name
alissa
- Australia
Profession
Student
Question
Salam,
How can such acts go unnoticed? Is there a body that ivestigates such crimes on behalf of the citizens...
thanks
Answer
That is a question that should be directed at the US public and their representatives. This is not the first time abuses in the current "War on Terror" get exposed, only to be followed by show trials, acquittals, light sentences for lower ranking brass.
Name
ali
- Canada
Profession
student
Question
can u explain to us what waterboarding is and why it is illegal?
Salam.
Answer
May be this mock demo held by UC Berkeley activists can explain to you visually what waterboarding is..
http://tinyurl.com/2nc3gl
As you see from the pix, the whole point is giving the detainee the impression that he's drowning, causing panic attacks and pscychological trauma which the sadist CIA interrogators think will stimulate the detainees to speak..
Name
A.Ibrahim
- Egypt
Profession
Question
Thank you Mr. Hossam for giving us this opportunity,
Do u think that the US took such experience in torturing from some Middle Eastern countries, especially that the means are a bit innovative ?
Answer
The pleasure is all mine Ibrahim.
Interesting question you ask. The US officials always express gratitude for the "Egyptian, Jordanian and Moroccan expertise in fighting terror" and there are Western agents who receive training in Cairo and the other Arab capitals continuously, in the same fashion that Arab intelligence agents also pay pilgrimages to the US and Europe for training.
But it's important to note that the current interrogation tactics used by the CIA evolves from a long history dating from the start of the Cold War. I recommend the following book:
http://www.amazon.com/Question-Torture-Interrogation-American-Project/dp/0805082484
Name
Tami
- United Kingdom
Profession
Question
Isn't it already
common knowledge, for everyone in the US and outside of it, that the CIA DOES use torture in interrogation (and other intelligence and state security bodies worldwide for that matter)? How come it is being "questioned" in the Congress whether the CIA uses torture? It's already all over American novels and movies and taken for granted by everyone.
Answer
Well, unfortunately you meet people in the US and outside who are living in denial, or think torture only happens in films or fiction, but not in reality. The scandals coming out of this "war on terror" however is helping to expose the sinister tactics of this agency further.
Name
Hamid
- Malaysia
Profession
student
Question
Why is the destruction of those tapes revealed now if it took place in 2005?
Answer
Security agencies like the CIA and co operate secretly by nature. You do get leaks to the media every now and then. Sometimes these are deliberate leaks that include false information and on other occasions you get whistleblowers.
Investigative work into security/terrorism field by journalists take time.
Name
Muslim Arabian
-
Profession
Question
Mr. Hossam, Is it true that when the Guantanamo people want to threaten some detainees they talk about Egyptian and Syrian prisons?
Answer
Detainees released from the US-run global gulag, which Gitmo is part of, have said they were threatened by their interrogators to be sent to Arab prisons if they did not cooperate. At least we know the US did indeed send back to the Arab countries a number of their nationals (and on occasions foreigners) for interrogation, like the cases of Abu Omar, Maher Arar
Name
Om Eman
-
Profession
Question
How do you expect this media frenzy about CIA tapes to end? What can be the repercussions of such an event?
Answer
As with the case of Abu Ghraib, Ghost Planes, and other scandals coming out from the War on Terror, the media will cover it for a short period of time, and then move to something else, or use it in the context of the coming presidential elections.
Name
Abdel-Salam.
- Egypt
Profession
Question
What can NGOs do for stopping torture? For example, what can people in Egypt do to stop the systematic torture taking place in Egypt's most prisons by brutal police officers who think themselves Guardians of the country.? Thanks
Answer
Naming and Shaming Torturers is the best tactic in the "War on Torture". And I think the Egyptian experience in that regards is something to be learned from. Police officers you know who are involved in torture must be photographed and their pix should be circulated on the web with information about them. Police stations which witness the death of detainees in custody must be picketed. However, in order to eradicate torture from Egypt, or elsewhere, we have to change the political and social system that produces those torturers. These security agencies' function is to protect the elite in every country, not the common citizen.
Name
An Oppressed
-
Profession
Question
Why do the Arab governments cooperate that easy way with the US policy of transferring prisoners to be tortured on their own lands and be returned? Why Egypt, Yemen. Syria, Saudi Arabia and Jordan are involved in such shameful act without people going out to streets to protest, I'm really disheartened.
Answer
These countries are ruled by corrupt dictators who depend on the US govt for political and military backing, hence they are more than happy to help out with such dirty operations.
Name
Jean
- United Kingdom
Profession
Question
In your opinion, do you agree that the US, the world haven of democracy, is really supporting torture in CIA prisons to protect the world from any possible terror attacks at the hand of terrorists. What do you think?
Answer
Nop, that's the 24's-Jack-Bauer argument that the some in the intelligence community put forward. But what has been proven again and again, that torture breeds the next generation of terrorists. Some say 9/11 was born in Egyptian prisons, and I strongly agree.
I recommend the following article to check out too:
http://arabist.net/archives/2006/06/25/chain-of-hatred/
Name
Abdullah Black
-
Profession
Question
To what extent is brutality used in the US prisons, and what is the most cruel of torture means that is there?
Answer
US rights activists have been extremely critical of the US prison system, especially the search raids conducted in the cells, that include stripping the detainees naked and making them crawl on the floor, subjecting them to beatings
Name
-
- Pakistan
Profession
Question
What can we, as ordinary citizens in nondemocratic countries, do to stop or even eliminate torture?
Answer
It's a priority for those ordinary citizens to start working to change the regimes they are living under, because it's those systems that breed torture and other inhumane practices.
Try to always spread the word about any abuse you hear about to your circle of peers and contacts.
I suggest you also check this link
http://arabist.net/arabawy/2007/11/07/what-can-you-do-to-help/
Name
Editor
-
Profession
Question
The session has ended. We would like to thank Mr. Hossam El-Hamalawy for taking the time to answer your questions, and all those who participated in the dialogue.
We apologize for not being able to answer all the questions due to time limitation.
