Further Description of the Anti-Torture Amendment

The Anti-Torture Amendment contains two separate provisions. The first provision provides for uniform standards of interrogation for people detained by the US Department of Defense. These standards come directly from the United States Army Field Manual on Intelligence Interrogation (15 MB PDF). The standards are derived from the Geneva Conventions. These guidelines "expressly prohibit acts of violence or intimidation, including physical or mental torture, threats, insults, or exposure to inhumane treatment as a means of or aid to interrogation."

The second part of the Anti-Torture Amendment creates a general prohibition on cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment to any person under custody or control of the US Government. There are two reasons for this language: first it extends protection to all individuals who are held byany agency of the US Government -- not just the Department of Defense; second, it defines cruel, unusual, and inhumane treatment or punishment as that which is prohibited by the Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States.

Full Text of the Anti-Torture Amendment

Current Status of the Anti-Torture Amendment