Amnesty International demands that Canada arrest former U.S. president George W. Bush

By Edward V. Byrne View Edward V. Byrne's profile
George W. Bush will visit Canada on October 20, and Amnesty International wants hims cuffed on arrival. A.I. says its demand is based upon Bush’s "global crimes," including torture.

"In accord with its international obligations, Canada is required to arrest and process the former president, given his responsibility under international law for crimes such as torture," said a spokesperson for the organization today. "Since up to this time U.S. authorities have not brought the president to justice, the international community must act. Canada’s failure to act [by arresting Bush] would violate the United Nation’s Convention against Torture, and demonstrate disrespect for fundamental human rights."

Amnesty International says that it sent a detailed memorandum to the Canadian government on September 21, outlining human rights violations allegedly committed by Bush between 2002 and 2009, when he was in the White House. Many of the details focused on so-called "secret renditions" carried out by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Under rendition procedures then in place, the CIA handed over an unknown number of suspected terrorists to other countries, generally in the Middle East, where they could be tortured or submitted to "extraordinary interrogation techniques" without fear of violating U.S. laws and constitutional guarantees against cruel and unusual punishment.
One of the torture techniques specifically mentioned in A.I.’s submission to the Canadian government is.... Read More in Mexico and Gulf Region Reporter