but that's not why i'm posting. one of the commentors to that post drew my attention to house concurrent resolution 118. h con res 118 passed unanimously on march 27, 2003, just after images of captured americans were broadcast on al-jazeera. the full text is in the link at the beginning of the paragraph, but these bits i find the most illuminating in light of recent events:
Whereas more than 190 nations, including the United States and Iraq, are parties to the Third Geneva Convention;
Whereas Article 13 of the Third Geneva Convention requires the humane treatment of prisoners of war and that prisoners of war be protected against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity;
Whereas Article 17 of the Third Geneva Convention explicitly prohibits the infliction of physical or mental torture and other forms of coercion on prisoners of war to secure from them information of any kind whatever and provides that prisoners of war who refuse to answer may not be threatened, insulted, or exposed to unpleasant or disadvantageous treatment of any kind;
[snip]
Whereas the Government of the United States has informed the Iraqi authorities that it intends to treat captured members of the Iraqi armed forces fully in accordance with the Third Geneva Convention and is in discussions with ICRC officials to facilitate access at the earliest possible time to Iraqi enemy prisoners of war held by United States Armed Forces; and
Whereas Iraqi television has broadcast what appear to be pictures of captured American military personnel; Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That the Congress--
[snip]
(1) demands that Iraqi authorities comply fully and immediately with its obligations and responsibilities of the Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War;
(2) condemns the failure of Iraqi authorities to treat prisoners of war in strict conformity with that Convention;
[snip]
(4) joins the President in warning all Iraqi authorities that any individual who mistreats any prisoner of war in violation of that Convention shall be considered a war criminal and prosecuted as such to the full extent of United States and international law...
i can't help wondering, would lawmakers pass a similar resolution today in response to the tortured iraqis? or does our commitment to the geneva convention and prosecution of war criminals only extend to the actions of our enemies?
