Bush Urged to 'Tell the Truth About Torture'

Bush Urged to 'Tell the Truth About Torture'

WASHINGTON - A red-and-black, 22-by-10-foot billboard mounted on a truck and emblazoned with the words ''Tell the truth about torture, Mr. President'' began circling the White House Wednesday as activists ratcheted up efforts to force President George W. Bush to confront U.S. treatment of terrorism suspects.

The human rights watchdog group deployed the mobile billboard as part of a two-week campaign including an online petition. Launched a week ago, that effort so far has drawn ''at least 25,000 signatures,'' Singh said.

''Americans believe in justice and due process, and that everyone is entitled to due process. We have certain values,'' she told OneWorld. ''Ultimately, we the U.S. are seen as an upholder of human rights and we need to continue to do that.''
Amnesty is among a number of organizations and lawmakers calling for an independent commission to investigate alleged mistreatment of terrorism suspects on U.S. soil, at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and the Guantanamo military base in Cuba, and at secret interrogation centers in Afghanistan and other countries.

Also Wednesday, Amnesty sent Bush a letter imploring him to make clear during his State of the Union speech that ''anyone responsible, even at the highest levels, for policies that have led to torture and ill-treatment will be held accountable and to ensure such abuses do not occur in the future.''

In the letter, William Schulz, Amnesty International USA's executive director, said his group welcomed passage late last year of the Anti-Torture Amendment, a piece of legislation he described as ''reaffirming the U.S. prohibition against cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment.''

Bush signed the legislation, Schulz added, but the president also issued a ''signing statement,'' or legal interpretation of the amendment, stating that it would not bind him in all circumstances.