US soldiers barred from torture by the US Senate

[Neil D]

Thursday Oct 6 19:15 AEST

The US Senate delivered a rare wartime rebuke to President George W Bush on Thursday by explicitly barring American soldiers from torturing or maltreating prisoners.

The changes follow the abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and allegations of mistreatment at Guantanamo Bay, where Australian detainee David Hicks is soon to face a military trial.

New strict US military interrogation guidelines were passed overwhelmingly by 90 votes to nine in the Republican-controlled Senate despite White House opposition.

The senators approved an amendment that prohibits "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment" against anyone in US government custody, regardless of where they are held.

The proposal was sponsored by Republican Senator John McCain, who was held as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam.

It requires all US military members to follow procedures in the Army Field Manual when they detain and interrogate terrorism suspects.

Bush administration officials say the legislation will limit the president's authority and flexibility in war.

But both Republican and Democrat lawmakers said US troops need clear standards for detaining, interrogating and prosecuting terrorism suspects.

"We demanded intelligence without ever clearly telling our troops what was permitted and what was forbidden.

"And, when things went wrong, we blamed them and we punished them," said McCain, a onetime presidential hopeful.

"Our troops are not served by ambiguity. They are crying out for clarity and Congress cannot shrink from this duty," said McCain.

The confrontation by members of the president's own party shows how reluctant some lawmakers are to give Bush unchecked wartime power as the conflict in Iraq drags on and US casualties mount.

It also comes as the president seeks to show strength after weeks in which his approval rating plummeted.

Americans are increasingly questioning the direction of the war, the sluggish federal response to Hurricane Katrina and the upsurge in gas prices.

Also pending is an amendment by Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, that would distinguish between a "lawful enemy combatant" and an "unlawful enemy combatant."

His proposal would put into law the procedures for prosecuting them at the US navy's Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, a retired four-star Army general, endorsed McCain's effort.

"The world will note that America is making a clear statement with respect to the expected future behaviour of our soldiers. Such a reaction will help deal with the terrible public diplomacy crisis created by Abu Ghraib," Powell said in a letter that McCain read on the Senate floor.