The National Religious Coalition against Torture and No2Torture (a grassroots Presbyterian organization) urge people to call our Representatives asking them to support an amendment that would require the Department of Defense to videotape interrogations of detainees in its custody.
Rep. Rush Holt is offering an amendment to H.R. 2647 (the FY 2010 National Defense Authorization Act) that would provide for such videotaping.
Congress will likely vote on the amendment on Thursday, June 25. To reach your Representative you can call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to his or her office.
Advocates suggest that videotaping interrogations marks a small step toward ensuring a permanent end to the use of torture:
- Knowing that interrogations are videotaped will send the message to interrogators that abusing a detainee is not acceptable.
- Videotape records of interrogations will enable the authorities to identify and resolve problems that might otherwise lead to the torture or other abuse of detainees.
- A permanent record of each interrogation will help to protect U.S. interrogators from spurious allegations of abuse.
Tell your Representative to support the Holt videotaping amendment. Call (202) 224-3121 now!
The Church Responds to Torture (PDF) includes a summary of Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly statements on torture, prayers, ideas for action and more.