The culpability of doctors in the U.S.-run torture program bubbles up every now and then, as it did in the New York Times earlier this week. Here are some highlights:
According to Justice Department memos released last year, the medical service opined that sleep deprivation up to 180 hours didn’t qualify as torture. It determined that confinement in a dark, small space for 18 hours a day was acceptable. It said detainees could be exposed to cold air or hosed down with cold water for up to two-thirds of the time it takes for hypothermia to set in. And it advised that placing a detainee in handcuffs attached by a chain to a ceiling, then forcing him to stand with his feet shackled to a bolt in the floor, “does not result in significant pain for the subject…”
The medical basis for these opinions was nonexistent. The Office of Medical Services cited no studies of individuals who had been subjected to these techniques. Its sources included a wilderness medical manual, the National Institute of Mental Health Web site and guidelines from the World Health Organization.
So the medical claims were just as sloppy as the legal claims. And just as the legal claims were rescinded and revised, the same should be done with the medical claims. It would be interesting, though, to hear a John Yoo-esque torture-authorizing doctor defend these decisions. However, it’s difficult to imagine that happening.
