RHR-NA Press Release on Mukasey Statements before Senate Judiciary Committee, 1/31/08
RABBIS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS NORTH AMERICA
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Rabbi Brian Walt, 508-696-1880 or brianwalt@rhr-na.org
January 31, 2008
Rabbis for Human Rights North America Condemns Testimony of Attorney General
(New York, NY) Rabbis for Human Rights North America (RHR-NA), a
multi-denominational rabbinic organization dedicated to universal human
rights and ending U.S.-sponsored torture, condemns Attorney General
Mukasey's position on torture that was presented during his testimony
yesterday before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
" We are outraged that the Attorney General said that what constitutes
torture should be balanced with the information being sought," said
Rabbi Brian Walt, Executive Director of RHR-NA. "His words serve as
legitimization of torture. Under our Constitution, U.S. federal law,
and international law, torture is a crime regardless of the
circumstances. The three acts prohibited without exception under
international law are slavery, genocide, and torture."
"We are especially appalled that the Attorney General refuses to
denounce water-boarding as torture," said Walt. "The long history of
Jews being subject to torture, from the Romans to the Nazis, makes us,
as Jews, especially aware of the inhumanity of those who use torture.
This is particularly true concerning waterboarding, a morally repugnant
technique developed to torture Jews during the Spanish Inquisition. As
people of faith, we are ashamed of the actions of our leaders."
At today's hearing Senator Joe Biden asked the Attorney General if he
thought about torture in relative terms, and if he thought it was okay to
water-board someone in certain circumstances. The Attorney General
responded by saying that "there is a statute under which it is a
relative issue. I think the Detainee Treatment Act engages the ...
'shocks the conscience' standard, which is essentially a balancing test
of the value of doing something as against the cost of doing it."
Senator Biden then asked what "cost" meant, and the Attorney General
said "I meant the heinousness of doing it, the cruelty of doing it,
balanced against the value [of the information you might get]."
"The Jewish tradition places supreme value on the fundamental dignity
of every person," said Rabbi Gerry Serotta, RHR-NA Chairman. "We
believe that every person is created in the image of God. Core
principles of Judaism preclude the violent physical or psychological
abuse of any human being - through water-boarding or any other torture
variant - even those convicted of a serious crime. Indeed, we take
immense pride in the 1999 Israeli Supreme Court decision that, drawing
on the best values of Jewish tradition and modern democracy, forbade
torture in any interrogation. There is no justification for torture.
RHR-NA calls for the appointment of a Special Counsel in the CIA tapes
case to ensure that those responsible for the torture of detainees are
held accountable."
"Surely, the top attorney of the world's pre-eminent democracy can more
clearly and effectively stand for fundamental human rights and adhere
to universal standards of the rule of law, said Rabbi Edward Feld,
RHR-NA Director of Education. "At stake is the moral core of our
nation."
RHR-NA is an interdenominational organization of rabbis dedicated to
education, advocacy, prayer, and action in support of human rights. The
groundbreaking "Honor the Image of God: Stop Torture Now" campaign has
been instrumental in keeping the issue of these abuses on the Jewish
national agenda. More than 700 rabbis and thousands of laypeople have
signed the Jewish Statement Against Torture since the campaign began.
K'vod Habriot, a new lay-rabbinic initiative linking Jews across the
country via their dedication to the core values of Judaism and human
rights, will continue RHR-NA's groundbreaking activism on the issues of
U.S.-sponsored torture of detainees overseas.
