Fellow Nobel Peace Laureates to Obama: Stain of US Torture Your Job to Repair

'When a nation’s leaders condone and even order torture, that nation has lost its way.'

Twelve fellow Nobel Peace Prize laureates have written an open letter to President Barack Obama, urging the 2009 recipient of the award to finally close one of the "dark chapters" of recent U.S. history by first acknowledging, and then rejecting, the "flagrant use of torture and other violations of international law" that have been conducted in the name of "fighting terrorism" since 2001.

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In addition to pressing for an overall commitment to disclose and disavow the torture practices conducted by the CIA and other agencies, the signers of the letter suggest President Obama take four specific steps in order to begin to repair the damage such actions have had on the nation and the world. They include:

Full disclosure to the American people of the extent and use of torture and rendition by American soldiers, operatives, and contractors, as well as the authorization of torture and rendition by American officials.
Full verification of the closure and dismantling of ‘black sites” abroad for the use of torture and interrogation.
Clear planning and implementation for the closure of Guantanamo prison, putting an end to indefinite detention without due process.
Adoption of firm policy and oversight restating and upholding international law relating to conflict, including the Geneva Convention and the UN Convention against Torture, realigning the nation to the ideals and beliefs of their founders – the ideals that made the United States a standard to be emulated.

Read the whole article including the open letter at:
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2014/10/27/fellow-nobel-peace-laureates-obama-stain-us-torture-your-job-repair