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Cheney slammed over torture

Suzanne Goldenberg

Washington: Only weeks after the United States military banned ``waterboarding'' — the simulated drowning of terrorist suspects under interrogation — Vice-President Dick Cheney has reignited America's debate on torture by endorsing the practice.

Mr Cheney's support for a technique disavowed by Congress and the Pentagon was immediately criticised by human rights organisations, putting the spotlight on a Vice-President who has tried to maintain a low profile during the mid-term election campaign.

In an interview with a conservative radio host in North Dakota, Mr Cheney was asked whether he was in favour of a ``dunk in the water'' for terrorist detenus. He replied that he was, saying: ``Well, it's a no-brainer for me, but for a while there, I was criticised as being the `Vice-President for torture'.''

During the current election season, Mr Cheney, regarded as the least popular figure in an unpopular administration, has so far kept out of the limelight, confining his public appearances to fundraisers with Republican loyalists or interviews with conservative news organisations. He has been an ardent defender of coercive interrogation practices. It was the Washington Post that dubbed him "Vice-President for torture" last year.

He led an aggressive campaign to grant legal amnesty to CIA personnel involved in interrogation of suspects at secret prisons, and has sought to reduce U.S. adherence to Geneva Convention bans on torture. President George W. Bush sought to distance himself from Mr Cheney's remarks. ``This country does not commit torture. We are not going to torture,'' he told journalists on Friday. —

© Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006

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