US forces ignore 'rule of law'

2004-03-05 20:10

New York - US military forces in Afghanistan have mistreated detainees, arbitrarily detained civilians and used excessive force in arrests of non-combatants.

This is according to a report released on Friday by Human Rights Watch.

The rights watchdog said it concluded "the US-administered system of arrest and detention in Afghanistan exists outside of the rule of law". The United States has detention facilities at Bagram, Kandahar, Jalalabad and Asadabad military bases.

"The United States is setting a terrible example in Afghanistan on detention practices," said Brad Adams, executive director of the Asia division of Human Rights Watch.

"Civilians are being held in a legal black hole - with no tribunals, no legal counsel, no family visits and no basic legal protections."

And Washington has not responded adequately to questions about arrest and detention practices, the group charged.

Detainees

It gave the example of three detainees it said were known to have died while in US custody, two at the Bagram airbase north of Kabul in December 2002 and one at Asadabad in June 2003.

The first two deaths were ruled homicides by US military pathologists who performed autopsies on the two men, but US officials have yet to explain what happened to any of the three men, the group said.

"This stonewalling must stop," said Adams. "The United States is obligated to investigate allegations and prosecute those who have violated the law. There is no sign that serious investigations are taking place."

The 59-page report is based on research conducted by Human Rights Watch in Afghanistan and Pakistan in 2003 and early 2004.

"Human Rights Watch documented cases of US forces using military tactics, including unprovoked deadly force, during operations to apprehend civilians in uncontested residential areas situations where law enforcement standards and tactics should have been used," the group said.

"Released detainees have said that US forces severely beat them, doused them with cold water and subjected them to freezing temperatures. Many said they were forced to stay awake, or to stand or kneel in painful positions for extended periods of time," the report said.

It also reported "frequent arbitrary arrests of civilians, apparently based on mistaken or faulty intelligence".

US President George W Bush and officials in his administration said in June 2003 that the United States does not torture or mistreat detainees in the custody of the United States.

"But the United States has refused to allow any independent observers access to detention facilities in Afghanistan, except for the International Committee of the Red Cross, which does not report publicly on its findings," the rights group said.

Human Rights Watch noted that some documented abuses in the report took place after President Bush's statement.

- AFP