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Retired Major General
John Batiste says that redefining the legal definitions in the Geneva
Convention Common Article 3 to allow for "harsh interrogations" will
set a standard that puts captured American troops in danager.
Additionally, Batiste is concerned that America will be "giving up the
morale high ground," which has allowed stronger foreign policy positions
for securing a peace in the world.
During his time commanding
troops, Batiste demanded that detainees be given the complete rights
afforded to them by the Geneva Conventions. Batiste maintained the high
standard even when the Pentagon suggested that parts of Geneva
conventions be ignored for the purpose of dealing with detainees. The
General says, "We recognized early on that the guidance we were
receiving from the Department of Defense was unclear, unlawful, and it
changed frequently. We chose to ground our detention operations
squarely on the Geneva Conventions."
Showing concern for the
treatment of American forces, Batiste says, "I totally agree with
General Powell. We dare not give up the morale high ground that we're
on right now. We must maintain the Geneva Conventions the way that they
are to protect our own service men and women should they ever be
captured. If we tinker with these documents in any way, it's just flat
wrong. We must set the example in this world."
General Batiste
was one of the first retired Generals to call for the resignation of
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. In the interview with CNN,
Batiste accused Rumsfeld's of allowing America to go down a slippery
slope which has led to the morally questionable bill that the Bush
Administration is lobbying for now. Reiterating his prior call for
Rumsfeld's ouster, he says, "I feel more strongly now than I ever have
that Donald Rumsfeld needs to go. He set the conditions for all of this
to happen. Abu Ghraib which was a direct result of these unclear and
unlawful rules of treatment of detainees and interrogations. His
incredibly poor judgement -- his terrible strategic planning -- led us
to where we are today, and I applaud our elected leaders who are finally
stepping up to the plate -- both Republicans and Democrats -- to ask
the right questions. God bless them. They're doing what we elected them
to do -- to hold people accountable."
