BELGIUM: EU condemns secret CIA prisons

The European Union condemned on Friday (September 15) the detention of terror suspects by the United States in secret overseas prisons, whose existence U.S. President George Bush first acknowledged last week. European nations had held back from criticising Washington over the matter after it first emerged in media reports last year, and said last December they were satisfied with U.S. statements denying any wrongdoing. The condemnation was tabled by Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot who called an emergency debate in his country after U.S. President George W. Bush had admitted that such secret prisons did exist and that they were necessary in the 'war on terror'. In the emergency debate, Bot said that he was "disappointed" because on repeated occasions in recent months he had asked the U.S. Administration if there was any substance in reports of these prisons. Bot refused to speak of a breach of trust and would go no further than to invoke a "blow" to trust. Bot at a briefing after the foreign ministers' meeting on support for the new proposed Palestinian coalition government and Iran's nuclear programme read the statement adopted by the EU. He defended his text against accusations by journalists that it was did not criticise the United States strongly enough. "The existence of secret detention facilities where detained persons are kept in a legal vacuum is not in conformity with international humanitarian law and international criminal law". That is the statement. And it's stands alone. If that cannot be called a statement, then I don't know anymore. But above of that we add (talking about the text) that we will continue our dialogue with the Americans just to be sure that, as we say, (then reads in English) 'safeguarding human rights, and the fight against terrorism'. (then in Dutch) In other words: we say very clearly that we condemn this but at the same time we are prepared, during our dialogue with the Americans, to have a look at what possible solutions there may be," Bot said. The statement also says "the EU reiterates its commitment to combating terrorism effectively using all legal means and instruments available. Terrorism is itself a threat to our system of values based on the rule of law. Bush publicly acknowledged the CIA held high-level terrorism suspects, including alleged Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, in secret overseas locations. He strongly defended the secret detention and questioning of terrorism suspects and said the CIA treated them humanely and did not torture. The detention program, disclosed last year by The Washington Post, provoked an international outcry. Bush announced last week Mohammed and 13 others were transferred recently to the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detention centre run by the Pentagon to be prosecuted in the future. On Thursday a Senate panel rejected Bush's pleas that new legislation on foreign terrorists allow CIA interrogators to use tough interrogation methods. Instead, the Senate Armed Services Committee endorsed an alternative bill by Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain that would better protect the rights of foreign terrorism suspects. Bush has not revealed the location of secret overseas jails, but EU member Poland and candidate country Romania have been accused of hosting such jails by an investigator for Europe's human rights watchdog, the Council of Europe.

ITN Source | September 17, 2006

Tags:. .statements. .sept. .journalists. .criminal. .committee