The EU Must Distance Itself From US Policy to Save Credibility

The EU is recognizing their hypocritical stance of aiding in or ignoring US policy of torture, extraordinary rendition, and other questionable covert operations is hurting the Union's credibility.

Chloe Davies from Reprieve, an organisation that has carried out detailed research into the CIA's activities, said that Europe's reputation as a defender of human rights has been tarnished.

"Little by little European powers' collusion in the kidnap, rendition and torture of terrorist suspects is coming to light," she said. "We now know that the CIA operated 'black sites' in Poland, Romania and apparently even on British territory in Diego Garcia.

"On many occasions CIA aircraft have been allowed to land on or cross European territory, en route to the kidnap and rendition of ghost prisoners to torture in secret prisons in countries like Syria, Jordan and Egypt. In addition European governments have allowed hundreds of prisoners to be ferried through their jurisdiction to illegal imprisonment, torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment in Guantanamo Bay (the U.S.-run camp in Cuba)."

The internal EU paper also recognises that there has been criticism of flaws in the EU rules aimed at preventing the export of equipment used for torture or the death penalty.

While these rules were introduced in 2005, a report by Amnesty International published last year found that loopholes in them meant that spiked batons known as 'sting sticks' used by the Chinese police and 'hanging ropes' used for executions in Sri Lanka, India, and Trinidad and Tobago could still be traded.

Since the Amnesty report was issued, the British government has undertaken to ban export of spiked batons and to work with other EU governments to curb the export of torture tools not explicitly covered by the 2005 rules. Amnesty had cited examples of British-made hanging ropes being used to execute prisoners in Trinidad and Tobago and of handcuffs engraved 'made in England' used to shackle detainees in Guantanamo Bay to walls and ceilings.

This whole situation should be interesting to watch unfold with the elections in the UK, our candidates and their necessity to address such issues, or downplay them in the case of McCain, and probably Hillary.

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