Brass knew about torture -- what now?

After denying repeatedly that the Canadian military knew about abuse by Afghan authorities, the country's top general now admits the army did in fact know of at least one case where a prisoner caught by Canadian troops and handed over to Afghan police was tortured. Given this evidence that the military and federal government have not told the entire truth about who knew what, when, should we have a public inquiry?

Comments

[Ed2]

Without being sarcastic to comments. Why are WE having the Inquiry and soon to pay compensation to victims. WE should be making the torturing country and responsible people be held accountable.

Are Canadian Taxpayers not being further tortured by a useless inquiry that will only benefit the incomes of the elite.

The way to explain it to Afghani Leaders is an immediate pull-out, lock stock and barrel, and never speak to them again.

No seat at the UN, no Foreign Aid, no travel, no immigration (because the guilty will move here first and continue their criminal activity), no newscasts from there, and really show them the cost of inhumanity. But the fact the Libyan and Syrian leaders live the high-life on tour in Canada is all we need to see. How about an Inquiry as to why we cater to criminals?

[Jordan Hill]

The issue is: The Government of Canada through a senior Minister of the Crown stated that "There was not a scintilla of evidence showing that Canada had any knowledge of anyone being tortured in Afgani hands".

Then we find out there was a scintilla of evidence; nay, significant evidence that the Government of Canada knew torture was taking place.

The issue is Government intentional deception to Parliament and all Canadians including those serving.

[Ed2]

If you want to stop this lunacy then follow my idea.

Allow the military machine to operate a profit of 5% above expense and all subcontractors and suppliers to benefit by 1% above costs.

Once the profit is taken out of war, and idiotic scandals, then all war ventures would prove a non-event for investment.

Think of the young lives we would save; something not calculated into the current equation of war.

[Donald J. Lester]

Norm,"The top general has now admitted that it did happen." You mean that someone threw a shoe at a prisoner...well that doesn't fall under torturer as defined by the Geneva Conventions.
Moreover, the top general stated that he only recently discovered the incident of "shoe"....
How can you turn this into torture...you mean to say that Bush was tortured when a shoe was thrown at him....until I have more information...I will be the first to apologize but from where I stand..this is simply a political innuendo...which may only prove that such tactics demonstrate that lack of leadership....

[Ed2]

I cannot help but reply to Miriam.

Native thugs, roads destroyed, illegal contraband which I suspect goes along way past regular products and into the seedy 'sex world' at all levels, after all natives are untouchable, beating innocent victims, harassing citizens through intimidation, not taking advantage of billions of dollars in aid, educational opportunities, business opportunities, and all provided by what you call 'the oppressors' give quite a different meaning to what you are stating.

If this were the Middle East; I believe the response to native uprising would be dealt with suddenly and without UN concern.

My point, and if I may speak for others, is why are we in any form of dealings with a nation/area that supports horrendous acts.

Tell me where your so-called 'white Canada' sends children into your community to do some lethal damage.

The Middle East is a solvable problem but moneymakers of the misery of war earn far too much profit to have a war ignored and finished.

Call me uncaring, call me a hate monger, or that I do not care for our citizens of the Global Village but my solution to the problem is far more effective than what has been going on.

I would tell the offending nation to turn over the guilty, including the Bin Laden types and Saddam's and such. If not, you lose one city per week to a Nuclear Bomb. Do not inform them of the city, do not inform them of the time, and let the thing fly. It worked with Japan. It worked in threat only when Reagan and Bush Sr. told Iranians to release the hostages from the American Embassy incident, otherwise the hostages will be home within 40 days, dead or alive. Only a fool would realize that Tehran would not be levelled. Why did it work? Because the terrorists only understand lethal force and not Humanity. A cause is pretty hard to defend when you have no country to represent.

In the future, when the UN or defending nation speaks, the terrorists will listen. In my opinion only, if the World Trade Center incident happened during the Reagan years a Nuclear Bomb would have been on its way east within hours.

Sorry, but that's how I see it. And for those who may criticize my view about Japan. Remember, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in a preemptive strike to knock out the US from their plans of controlling the world, but as usual, when the response is severe people criticize. Also look at what the soldiers of the Empire of the Sun did to innocent citizens of their own nations and others.

[Norm]

Donald, you are handy at avoiding the facts. The top general has now admitted that it did happen. So now we know it did, what's your next excuse for avoiding the truth?

[Donald J. Lester]

Norm,:If this happened" is the point. Take all the political hoopla out of the equation as I have not read any reliable source to date that provides any empirical facts. The reality this situation seems to be more about politicians attempting to gain some political points at the expense of those who have risked their lives to do what the rest of want to sit in judgment without the facts...

[Donald J. Lester]

Miriam James, equating Afghanistan to, "the natives in Caledonia, is nonsensical; though there is a double standard of the law applied. Moreover you state, "... if it is ok to break international law..." The facts are this law was written with the idea of conventional wars...when all solders wore a uniform, when the enemy is invisible hidden among children, women and the general public, it's a total different story?

When push comes to push war is just like a street fight...sticks, knives and guns...except it war it's 1000 times worse...Rules are sometimes necessarily exchanged for survival...Those international lawmakers were not there either...siting in their pits looking for investment opportunities, washing their hands waiting to judge and laying the blame. Perhaps if the UN had any balls this whole thing could have been avoided...but in the end those that get blamed will be some bottom line solders who were following orders and did the best they could.

As far as Caledonia is concerned, if the Federal, and Provincial Government had done what they should have, this situation would never have occurred. Laid down the law...the law that applies to all Canadians. But what we know is, here in this Country as well as in others everyone can be bought, in one form or another. Perhaps in this Country it's because we don't demand responsible and accountable government. Perhaps it's a fear that is instilled within us, like those in other Countries and one day corruption will rule; or maybe we have just become a bunch of jellyfish.

[Miriam James]

So, too bad, you don't care, what could we do, not our fault, we were only following orders. Besides, what happened to them they probably deserved. Nice attitude. Quite a few soldiers in the nazi army said the same thing.
So, if it is ok to break international law this way, then the rule of law really is subjective. So the natives in Caledonia are fine, right? You can't be selective about obeying the laws set down. You either play by the rules, or you don't,
Or, like most of you, you play by the rules when it suits you. Sounds like white is right.

[Donald J. Lester]

Hale..to those who believe we live in a perfect war world....Perhaps their should have been an Inquire into the Iraqi war...Now did Canadian solders knowingly turn captured solders to Afghanistan's, or was it a road of discovery.

More importantly Canadian soldiers we there to help bring the Taliban under control..It seems that the prisoners were the responsibility of Afghanistan.

I am not suggesting that I support acts of terror. Having said that, the Afghanistan people were living in a reality of being beheaded if they did not submit to the Taliban, including others.

War is cruel and demoralizing at best. War is the breakdown of a civilization where by all good intentions are broken down to the most cruelest of acts. The only one to stand are those who can insert the greatest fear...Hitler used the gas chamber and we used the atom bomb... in an objective view the results were the same...the only difference was our philosophical difference...

Though the media and on-lookers stand on the sidelines with virtuous acclaims; let them stand in the place of our soldiers and survive with decrees of virtuosity amidst the blood, guts and the cries of terror. In particular when the enemy is cloned amidst children, women and shop keepers.

How do you apply any rules...it becomes a matter of doing the best you can...there will be innocent victims and acts the don't follow the rules...why, because the enemy is not outwardly defined...wars are not miraculous they are tragedies- but when an invisible evil invades it must be eradicated and so will some of the innocent because no one is perfect...soldiers are not gods...and if you are, what have you done?

[Ed]

I take it none of the bleeding hearts have children there, mmm didn't think so.

[Ricko]

Not to split hairs Norm, but an amendment exists in GC3 which deals directly with "unlawful combatants". This was placed in as an addendum when the "War on Terror" began under the "loving" GW Busch.

The Canadian Government knows this escape clause and will use it when the time is right.

Until then, the mass population of Canadians will follow like deer in big bright headlights.

[Chris]

We need the inquiries to find out who in the Canadian military knew about this, did nothing, and get them out.
I'm sorry if it's hard for fellow Canadians to hear the truth, but it needs to be brought to light.

[MARTY]

These inquiries do nothing but provide political advertising sessions for the opposition at the expense of the taxpayer. We need this government to arrest and charge those found guilty of actually committing the acts of torture. If you believe we went to afghanistan to train their police/military and improve their standard of living, it would prove otherwise if we choose to not legally persue those individuals who committed acts of torture. Are these really the reasons we are there? Let's see some action on this.

[Norm]

An inquiry into what? Well, let's see. How about an inquiry into whether Canadian troops violated the Geneva Conventions. If this happened in Some other country we would be calling it a war crime.

[Ricko]

An inquiry into what?

The Taliban tortured these people, and now some Taliban are being fed the same bitter pill from the hand of the tortured.

It’s called revenge; eye for an eye. We live in a world of hatred. End of story.

This is no different than other historical racial / ethnic hatred around the world.
Jews and Muslims, Muslims and Hindu, Serbs, Muslims and Croatians, Protestants and Catholics, All of Europe and Roma, Blacks and Whites, Whites and Latino, French and English, Germans and Jews, and so on and so on.

Sorry to be so blunt, but those who think an inquiry is justified here should look at themselves first and judge weather they too have looked the other way in ignorance while others (not of your idealistic belief) suffer from hand or sword. You people are the ones who make me laugh.

Somalia ring a bell? How about China? How about Mongolia? How about Rwanda? Cambodia?

What is your noble opinion on that? Do you even know? Yah, that’s what I thought

This is a Liberal political stunt to stir the polls. Nothing more. It will be forgotten too once the masses go back to texting, playing video games, and watching Survivor.

[Norm]

You are all missing the point. If we handed over prisoners and knew they were being abused, we broke international law -- the Gevenva Conventions. That's called a war crime

[Michelle Hruschka]

I have nothing about contempt for our leaders. There is enough info around the internet in which people can see what the real reason why we are over there.

It has nothing to do with spreading democracy, helping women and children.

It is really sad, that so much money and resources are wasted on war, violence, profiteering.

Canadians need to stand up, our leaders no longer represent us.

I was watching CPAC the day they were discussing the 10 percenters. It is pretty shameful and wasted time, when we see the liberals and conservatives, who do exactly the same thing, over and over again standing there like 5 year olds blaming each other.

Why people keep voting for these two parties, I will never understand.

[Lennard]

No public inquiry. Find the Afghan authorities who assaulted and tortured these suspects and put them in jail. This cannot stand, Canada can not go on as normal. The Afghan authorities need to be nailed on this because THEY ARE THE ONES WHO DID THE TORTURING.

[craig duvall]

Ed2; I so much agree, ok lets do it, enough talk

[Roland]

Please do not waste MY tax dollars on a public enquiry rergarding detainees!!!

[Ed2]

All of this and other Inquires are missing the point. Why are we in communication in any form of assistance or effort with an abusing Nation. Period.

All we ever do, through Foreign Aid and military effort, is to allow the offending Nation to continue as business as usual and then invite their representatives as trendy elite to visit Canada on our tab.

FIX THIS PROBLEM FIRST and the secondary part will go away.

History just repeats itself into eternity. It's high time to stand up to these misfits and declared them accountable to the fullest limit, but no, we cannot wait to give them Foreign Aid and accept there citizens or products and transfer the mentality and abuse to Canada and then declare their violence as a domestic problem.

If Canada stands for a great nation and values then make damn certain the nation we are going to help follows the same or else back away. No one helped Canada in our early history to sort out differences within and opposing nations nor did anyone help the United States during their Civil War and foreign nations should work out their own problems because as I see it, every time we help, we are expected to pay compensation for someone else’s abuse.

And in the end, will the new proposed HST and Toll Road Fees be used to help this Inquiry expenses and not the reason and source it was intended for.

IT'S HIGH TIME TO STAND UP PEOPLE. This can only repeat itself over again.