The pictures were provided to Army investigators buy Sgt. Joseph Darby, a military policeman who believed the acts illustrated in the pictures to be morally wrong. Darby recalls that this is not the only abuse that went on in the prison. He said that the abuse started before his unit even got to the prison. For example, when his unit was getting a tour of the compound back in October of 2003, they saw about 15 prisoners sitting in their cells with women’s underwear on. He also said that there were government agencies that would come to the prison and take detainees, and who knows how long it would be until the prisoner came back, or if he came back. One instance Darby recalls a Black Hawk landing at 4 a.m. and some guys taking a prisoner. They proceeded to hang up sheets so that nobody could see what they were doing. They spent all night behind the sheets, and then when they came back they announced that the prisoner was dead. They asked for ice to pack him, and then told U.S. soldiers to clean up their mess, and to remember that they weren’t there. Things went on at Abu Ghraib that were not only morally wrong, but cruel, unsuitable, and un-reported.
Eventually, six U.S. soldiers were charged with offenses connected to the abuse of the Iraqi prisoners. All soldiers are believed to be members of the 800th Military Police Brigade, which had guarded Abu Ghraib prison. The soldiers were charged with assault, dereliction of duty, cruelty, maltreatment, conspiracy, and indecent acts with another. More soldiers had violated the Uniform Code Military Justice, and seventeen in all were suspended from their duties.
Some people believe that issuing the photos of abuse at Abu Ghraib was a good idea, while some people see it as detrimental to the United States efforts, and to U.S. soldiers. General Mark Kimmitt said that he was worried that the reports of abuse against Iraqis would “increase the risk to the individual soldier.” Military expert Colonel Bob Stewart was also concerned about the reaction of the allegations of abuse, and said that the pictures would provoke an already unstable, unpredictable situation in the Arab world. Many saw the releasing of the information to lead to setbacks of the U.S. efforts to win over hearts and minds of Iraqi people, negative effects on the moral of U.S. troops in Iraq, and the fuelling of anti-U.S. anger. However, while many people who saw the issuing of the reports of abuse to be harmful to the national mood, and national security, they could not deny that the acts committed by the U.S. soldiers were atrocious. The releasing, and reporting of such events that went on at Abu Ghraib, while perhaps were damaging to the national mood, and national security, were necessary for the perseverance of justice around the world. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” The notion of fairness, and human rights overrides the condition of the United State’s.
The atrocities that happened at Abu Ghraib were indeed appalling, and something had to be done about it. If the American Civil Liberties Union, and other rights groups hadn’t filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Defense Department, many of the horrible things that happened at Abu Ghraib would have gone un-noticed. In contrary to the people who believe that the issuing of the information was unhelpful to the U.S., really, it was a victory for the public. It is the public’s right to know what U.S. troops are doing in the Middle East, and it is the public’s right to know the full truth. If people let things like what happened at Abu Ghraib go unnoticed, then the inherent right to physical integrity and dignity of a person would become more and more a casualty. What happened at Abu Ghraib was unacceptable, and a severe attack on the dignity and humanity of Iraqis. If things like this are not published, and re-told by the news media, and print news outlets, then nothing will change. Nothing will be present to provoke change, and justice.
Also, when a country as dominate as the US openly defies the law, it invites others to do the same. The negative reactions to what happened were vital to U.S. moral and security. If the American public didn’t show disgust for such acts as this, then other countries would look down on the U.S. even more. The way we react is just as, or even more important than the releasing of the acts itself.
Yes, the coverage on the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal may not have been wonderful coverage on the United States soldiers, but the country’s reaction to it, and its motion to charge the soldiers, and take action shows that the U.S. does not stand for things like this, and will not put up with such brutality. In the end, it showed that the few Americans that committed the tortures on the Iraqi detainees didn’t showcase the rest of America. So, ultimately, the explanatory coverage on the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse story may have been harmful to the national mood, and national security for a moment, but in the long run, it opened the eyes of many Americans and many people around the world to what some U.S. soldiers, and other soldiers from other countries were doing. It provoked people to question the United States and their motives, and forced them to take action against such atrocities. Something that is essential. Without coverage on this particular topic, it would allow treatment like this to pursue, and it would allow the government, and the military to get away with it. In the long run, the nations mood, nations security, human rights, and human freedoms would all be jeopardized if this story were not reported on.
Sources:
"Abu Ghraib Inmates Recall Torture." BBC News. 01 Oct. 2006 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4165627.stm>.
"Iraq Prison 'Abuse' Sparks Outrage." CNN. 01 Oct. 2006 <http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/04/30/iraq.photos.reaction/index.html>.
"Prisoner of Conscience." Men.Style.Com. 30 Sept. 2006 <http://men.style.com/gq/features/landing?id=content_4785>.
"Q&A: Iraq Prison Abuse Scandal." BBC News. 01 Oct. 2006 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3701941.stm>.
Starr, Barbara. "Soldiers Charged with Abusing Iraqi Prisoners." CNN. 01 Oct. 2006 <http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/03/20/iraq.prison.abuse/index.html>.
