Dbq on the Usefulness of Torture - 1072 Words

The War on Terror has produced several different viewpoints on the utilization of torture and its effectiveness as a means to elicit information. A main argument has been supplied that torture is ineffective in its purpose to gather information from the victim. The usefulness of torture has been questioned because prisoners might use false information to elude their torturers, which has occurred in previous cases of torture. It has also been supposed that torture is necessary in order to use the information to save many lives. Torture has been compared to civil disobedience. In addition, the argument has been raised that torture is immoral and inhumane. Lastly, Some say that the acts are not even regarded as torture. Torture is†¦show more content†¦At the same time, he must subject himself to the consequences of an illegal act. The comparison between civil disobedience and torture is similar to the viewpoint that torture is necessary in order to save a country. There are some that do not constitute the United States treatment of the prisoners at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo as torture because there were different definitions of the word. According to the Third Geneva Convention, torture is defined as acts of violence and any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental is intentionally inflicted. After the September 11, 2001 attack, the United States changed its definition of torture to physical pain amounting to torture must be equivalent in intensity to the pain accompanying serious physical injury, such as organ failure, impairment of bodily function, or even death. To be regarded as torture, the act must cause some lasting, though not necessarily permanent damage. Some disregard these acts as simply cruel treatment and do