CIA Report Letter to Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, April 26, 2013

CIA Report Letter from Bishop Richard E. Pates, Chairman, USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace, to Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, April 26, 2013

The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence completed a multi‑year investigation into CIA interrogation practices, including torture, and prepared a final report during the 113th Congress. This report has been several years in the making and represents an important effort to shed light on practices that have placed in jeopardy our nation’s reputation of defending human rights. 

USCCB position

• The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) unequivocally opposes torture, calling it an intrinsic evil that violates human dignity and cannot be justified.
• The USCCB supported the 2009 executive order banning torture and advocates codifying that ban into law.

Key arguments against torture

• Moral: Torture degrades victims, corrupts perpetrators, and weakens the moral fabric and credibility of society.
• Practical: Former intelligence and military experts have stated torture yields unreliable information and is counterproductive.
• Security: Use of torture undermines international cooperation with nations that reject torture and can fuel extremist recruitment.

Request and rationale

• The USCCB urges the Select Committee to release the full Senate report so the public can learn the truth about past practices.
• Public disclosure and legal prohibition would help prevent future use of torture and restore U.S. moral standing as a defender of human rights.

CIA-Report-Letter-to-Senate-Select-Committee-on-Intelligence-2013-04-26.pdf