Attempted Christmas Day attack is an argument against torture, not for it
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
Sen. John Kerry has invited Alhaji Umaru Mutallab to testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Mr. Mutallab is the father of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian who allegedly attempted to blow up Northwest Airlines flight 253 on Christmas Day. Mr. Mutallab warned American officials at the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria that his son posed a threat to U.S. security. The Senate invitation has bipartisan support and many consider this father's actions heroic.
A year ago today, on just his second full day in office, President Obama issued an executive order banning torture. That ban paved the way for Mutallab to divulge damaging information about his son to U.S. officials. If the United States had not ruled out torture, it is hard to imagine Mutallab disclosing this information. No father would turn in his son if he thought he would be tortured.
Obama's executive order made it possible for a Muslim man to trust the United States with incriminating information about his son.
That trust is a valuable asset.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
The vital information about his son's radicalization -- if properly pieced together with other intelligence -- might have averted the attempted terrorist act.
Yet, even as we witness the fruits of rejecting torture, pundits have called for reviving it. Commentator Pat Buchanan suggested that we deny Abdulmutallab pain medication for his burns. One recent poll claims 58 percent of Americans support using waterboarding or other forms of torture or cruelty on Abdulmutallab.
America's leaders are not too soft to use torture. They are too smart. They know that to protect our country from terrorists, and to collect vital information, we need the trust of individuals and governments worldwide.
At a basic level, Mr. Mutallab recognized our common humanity. Father Mutallab will no doubt be criticized by many in his country for what he did. Perhaps he is now in danger from extremists who don't want other Muslim fathers to follow his example. Let's hope that this debate doesn't deter others from emulating him.
The United States stands the best chance of becoming the ally of more people around the world -- people who can join us in the fight against terrorism -- by rejecting misguided calls to again use torture.
----
Douglas Johnson is executive director of the Center for Victims of Torture, based in Minnesota.
