MPs condemn Government silence in torture row
A group of MPs has slammed the Government for twice refusing to say whether Britain uses information extracted under torture in foreign countries.
In a new report published today, the Foreign Affairs Select Committee warns that using information obtained by torture risks encouraging such practices and urges ministers to “come clean” about the nature of the intelligence Britain uses.
“We find it surprising and unsettling that the government has twice failed to answer our specific question on whether or not the UK receives or acts upon information extracted under torture by a third country,” the report states.
“We recommend that the Government give a clear answer to the question,” it said.
“The Government should ensure that it is understood by other governments that the mistreatment of British nationals is unacceptable and will be met with appropriate action.”
The Foreign Office said it would respond to the report in due course, but a spokesman insisted that the government condemned the use of torture.
But Amnesty International said it shared MPs’ concerns about the Government’s “apparent evasiveness” over whether it had accepted and acted upon torture evidence.
The select committee’s annual report on human rights also condemns the treatment of detainees in Guantanamo Bay.
MPs say that now British detainees have been released from the Cuba camp there is no need for the Government to remain silent about oppressive conditions there.
The report recommends that ministers should make “strong public representations” to the US over the mistreatment of detainees and raise the matter with the UN Commission for Human Rights.
The issue of Turkey’s human rights record was also highlighted by MPs, who warned that abuses must be ended if the country is to join the European Union.
