David Miliband: Britain was slow to act against US torture

[sabra]

Source: independent uk

Critics of Labour leadership frontrunner accuse him of 'burying his head in the sand' over abuses

The United States did "bad things" to terror suspects in the wake of 9/11 which Britain was too slow to realise, David Miliband acknowledges today as he brandishes his record as Foreign Secretary to bolster his Labour leadership ambitions.

In an exclusive interview with The Independent on Sunday, the contest's frontrunner speaks bluntly about both the behaviour of Britain's closest intelligence ally and the failings of his predecessors at the Foreign Office in not recognising sooner the US's unacceptable treatment of detainees.

Reaffirming his commitment to an "ethical foreign policy", Mr Miliband's remarks will shift the focus on to Jack Straw, who was Foreign Secretary as the Bush administration launched its "war on terror". "The facts are that bad things were done by the Americans after 2002 and they didn't tell anyone else," Mr Miliband said. "Slowly the pieces of the jigsaw were put together and when they were put together the British government acted.

"Should we have been faster to put those pieces of the jigsaw together? Yes. But is it true that Britain's secret agencies act without ministerial or legal oversight? No. Is it true that serious allegations are swept under the carpet? No. They actually end up with police investigations, which is the strength of our system."

Read more: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/exclusive-miliband-britain-was-slow-to-act-against-us-torture-2064949.html

[Winterblues]

1. They actually end up with police investigations, which is the strength of our system."

Too bad America doesn't have such strength...:shrug:

[Diclotican]

2. sabra

sabra

The funny thing is that many of us, who was just following what we got to know from the news, was against the use of torture, long before the pictures of torture and proud soldiers was coming from Abu Girab prison camp in Iraq.. Even long before in Afghanistan, where a few officers was accused of using metodes who was not legal to extract information from prisoners, was given some light to the long term use of torture by the republican led administration where GWB was the frontguy...

And I know really well what happend, when the first words about it was coming to light, and "loyalists" both in US, and otherwice was all over it, and claimed it to be not true, that everyone who claim torture was lying and telling tell-tales

We who was not "lojalist" was the one, who had the truth on our side, the right wingers was wrong, and when the Abu Girab was blowin up in their face,, they insisted that the metodes they was using, was not torture at all.. Nothing more than the special forces of the world was using on a regular basis in basic training so to say...

But at least, the UK is starting to investigate, and maybe even prosecute them who are posible gulty on criminal things... That is fare more than the US are doing.. When wil US prosecute the gulty ones.. When they are all dead? Cheney and Rumsfelds would not live forever you know.. And I doubt Bus jr wil be of old age...

Diclotican

[conspirator]

3. Who cares what politicians say? Blah blah blah, while receiving cash from the corporations n/t

[No Elephants]

4. Britain did not know? Riiiiiight. I believe him.