First court martial over mal-treatment of Iraqi prisoners

[xarir]

US forces have announced the first court martial to try a soldier over the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal.

Specialist Jeremy Sivits, a 24-year-old military policeman, will go on trial in Iraq on 19 May.

Brig Gen Mark Kimmitt said he faced three charges in relation to the maltreatment of detainees, and the trial would be open to the public.

Six other soldiers are also facing criminal charges - and Gen Kimmitt said "we may see more people involved".

Spc Sivits of Hyndman, Pennsylvania, is the first person for whom a trial date has been set over the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad.

The charges he faces are:

- conspiracy to maltreat subordinates and detainees,

- dereliction of duty for negligently failing to protect detainees from abuse, and

- cruelty and maltreatment of detainees.

Gen Kimmitt said Spc Sivits would be treated as innocent until proven guilty.

"Please don't paint with such a wide brush that it indicts the other 135,000 American soldiers and marines out there doing the right thing," he told a news conference in Baghdad.

Spc Sivits' father, Daniel Sivits, was quoted by the Associated Press news agency as saying his son had been "just doing what he was told to do".

He said his son had been trained as a truck mechanic, not as a prison guard.

On Saturday US President George Bush promised that "we will learn all the facts and determine the full extent of these abuses".

"Those involved will be identified. They will answer for their actions," Mr Bush said.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/3698527.stm

 

[xarir]

While Spc Sivits' father is probably just doing the natural fatherly thing of trying to protect his son, I don't buy the bit about just following orders. History has shown us that this excuse is not a valid one. Members of the military are supposed to execute personal judgement if they feel an order is invalid or unjust.

So I do agree with the charges of dereliction of duty and of cruelty & maltreatment. The conspiracy charge is interesting - I guess we'll see what happens in the trial.

But the thing that really tweaks my interest if the claim that Spc Sivits is a mechanic and not a prison guard. If true, (i.e. If Sivits received no special training as a prison guard or only received rudimentary training) it truly represents a breakdown in the chain of command all the way up to to Rumsfeld and arguably President Bush as Commander in Chief. While Sivits may (or may not) be guilty of the charges he faces, I think a greater failure lies with those in the military organization and civilian government who may have put non-specilaists in what amount to very focussed situations.