Doing Ethics

Affirming that “our ideals give us the strength and moral high ground” to combat terrorism, President Obama today signed executive orders that will end the CIA's secret overseas prisons, ban coercive interrogation methods, and close the Guantanamo detention camp within a year.

I applaud the President's commitment to the rule of law. A chapter in Doing Ethics in a Diverse World is devoted to the war against terrorism and explains that the right not to be tortured is a human right under international law. The chapter also presents character and consequential arguments against the use of torture.

So, what should we do with the "bad guys" now being held in secret CIA prisons and at Guantanamo? Apply the rule of law. A prisoner of war is protected by the Geneva Conventions as well as US law. Anyone detained for allegedly committing a crime should be presumed innocent and tried in a court of law.

With hope...Bob

Labels: rule of law