Torture is Never Justified - Essay Example

Running Head: TORTURE IS NEVER JUSTIFIED Torture is Never Justified Name Course Institution Date Torture is Never Justified Executive Summary This essay has discussed why torture is never justified. It has also examined arguments that support the use torture. Through a review of various relevant literatures, it is established in this essay that, torture is never justified because it is inhumane, unethical, morally wrong and contravenes with human rights. This argument is founded on Immanuel Kant’s ethics theory which stipulates that the morality of an action is essentially based on the adherence of the action to rules or duty. On the other hand, some contemporary commentators argue that torture can be justified in certain extreme circumstances, especially when the lives of many people are in danger. Those in support for the use of torture in extreme cases base their arguments on consequentialism and utilitarian ethics which dictate that an ethical or a morally right action is one that produces good outcomes or positive consequences. Nevertheless, the key argument in this essay is that, torture cannot be justified since it undermines human dignity and contravenes with human rights. Introduction This essay seeks to provide incisive insight on why torture is never justified based on a review of various relevant literatures. In addition to this, it will present counter arguments supporting the use torture. Torture is commonly described as the deliberate infliction of mental or physical pain by individuals acting on the orders of an authority in order to force a suspect to make a confession or yield information. Similarly, the “United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel and Inhuman Treatment” defines torture as suffering or pain either mental or physical that is inflicted on person for purposes such as; obtaining a confession, coercing information, intimidation or punishment for a crime (Carll, 2007). Over the years, there has been much debate and controversy regarding whether or not torture is justified. Some, especially human rights and religious groups argue that, torture is not justified since it is morally wrong and it violated fundamental human rights. Furthermore, based on the International Human Rights Conventions torture is regarded as a crime against humanity. Conversely, others argue that torture is morally justified in certain extreme circumstances (Miller, 2005; Rehman & Breau, 2007). The thesis of this essay accentuates that, torture is never justified because it is inhumane, unethical, morally wrong and contravenes with fundamental human rights. Effects of Torture In his article, “No pain, no gain? Torture and ethics in the war on terror” Bellamy (2006) provides elaborate examples on some of the detrimental effects of torture. He alludes to the cases of terrorist suspects who were victims of inhumane torture despite the fact that no evidence of terrorist activities was established. Bellamy notes that, torture victims undergo critical physical and mental torment that can eventually lead to health complications, mental trauma and even death. In addition to this, he points out the possibility that innocent persons could be victims of inhumane torture (Bellamy, 2006). In most cases, torture involves the use of brutal and inhumane practices such as copal punishment, sexual assault, mutilation, oxygen deprivation, tooth extraction, solitary confinement, intimidation and blackmailing. These practices are generally inhumane and undermine human dignity (Rejali, 2009). Furthermore, Miller (2005) observes that victims who have been subjected to prolonged torture often become psychologically or physically damaged such that after their release, they are unable to function as normal human beings. Bellamy also notes that torture involves the use of violence against persons who are defenseless thus it violates the principles of non-combat immunity (Bellamy, 2006). It is also worth noting that, the use of torture may not necessarily be effective in realising certain goals such as the disclosure of information. In some cases, victims may provide wrong information due to the pressure or pain they are experiencing. Moreover, in some instances suspects may experience emotional and psychological trauma, loose consciousness, loose their memory or even die as a result of brutal treatment. Thus the use of torture can be ineffective and unjustifiable (Rejali, 2009). The Legality of Torture Based on a deontological outlook, Immanuel Kant’s ethics theory stipulates that the morality of an action is essentially based on the adherence of the action to rules or duty. According to this theory, the wrongness or rightness of an action is not dependent on the consequences of the action rather it is dependent on the whether the action fulfills duty or is in line with the set rules (Kant, 2009). According to the International Human Rights Conventions torture is regarded as a crime against humanity. Moreover, the “United Nations Convention Against Torture forbids individuals and nations from using torture. Similarly, in 1949 the Geneva Convention outlawed acts of torture particularly against prisoners of war (Rodley & Pollard, 2009). In democratic countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada among many other countries, the use of torture is outlawed. For instance, in the United States torture is outlawed under the Eighth Amendment. Torture is particularly considered a crime in “Standards of Conduct for Interrogation” under 18 U.S.C section 2340- 2340A. The United States also provides political asylum to victims who have credible fears of torture at the hands of authorities (Greenberg, 2006; Said, 2006). In Australia, the Crimes Legislation Amendment Bill, relating to Torture Prohibition and Death Penalty Abolition was enacted under the Commonwealth Criminal Code. Generally, this bill outlaws the use of torture or any inhumane punishment (Heller & Dubber, 2010). According to these set of laws torture is not justified. Therefore, with reference to Kant’s ethics theory, torture is unlawful and unethical since it is not in accordance to the set rules or laws. The Morality of Torture Torture is not only regarded as unethical and unlawful, it is also morally wrong. There is broad consensus that torture is morally wrong since most of the torture methods used are in humane and barbaric. Sussman (2005) argues that torture is morally wrong mainly because it violates the will of a human being. He observes that the main goal of using torture is to force an individual to collude against himself or his own will. When brutal torture methods are used, the victim often experiences a sense of powerlessness and is forced to be complicit in their own violation. Sussman notes that, torture also violates the victim’s autonomy and agency. It also perverts the victims and makes them yield and become retrogressive (Sussman, 2005). Torture and Human Rights Torture is also not justifiable because it violates fundamental human rights. The ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights,’ provides some of the fundamental rights that each individual is entitled to regardless of their status. For instance Article 5 stipulates that; “No person should be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” Similarly, Article 9 provides that, “No person should be subjected to arbitrary arrest, exile or detention.” In addition to this, Article 10 of the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights, provides that, “each individual is entitled to fair public hearing by an impartial and independent tribunal, in the determination of his obligations and rights or any criminal charge leveled against them .” Evidently, the use of torture especially in the form of copal punishment, sexual assault, mutilation, oxygen deprivation, solitary confinement and detention without trial contravenes with the fundamental human rights provided under the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ (Puybaret, 2008). Based on the findings of the literatures reviewed in the above section, it is thus evident that torture is not justified mainly because it is inhumane, unethical, morally wrong and contravenes with human rights (Bellamy, 2006). Counter Argument Although most people agree that inhumane and barbaric torture can never be justified. Some argue that the use of torture is justifiable or morally mandatory in certain extreme circumstances. Those who support the use of torture often allude to consequentialism and utilitarian ethics. Generally, consequentialism ethics dictates that an ethical or a morally right action is one that produces good outcomes or positive consequences. On the other hand, utilitarian ethics dictate that an ethical or a morally right action is one that maximizes on the overall happiness of many rather than that of an individual. In essence, these ethical perspectives hold that, an action should be judged directly based on its consequences for happiness (Graham, 2010). Philosopher Michael Levin justifies and supports the use of torture based on a utilitarian outlook. He gives an example of a scenario where the lives of many people will be lost unless a suspected terrorist in custody provides information regarding the location of a bomb. Levin notes that, the suspect may refuse to talk or provide information on the location of the bomb. Therefore, in such, a case the use of torture is justifiable so as to coerce the suspect to disclose the required information that would save the lives of the innocent people. The use of torture in this case would maximizes on the overall happiness of many or result to a positive consequence that would benefit many (Levinson, 2002). Similarly, Levinson (2002) and Miller (2005) argue that torture is morally justified in certain extreme circumstances, especially when the lives of people are in danger. Conclusion A critical review of literature shows that, there is much debate and controversy regarding whether or not torture is justified. Basically, this essay has discussed why torture is never justified. Based on the findings of the various literatures reviewed, it is apparent that torture is not justified mainly because it is inhumane, unethical, morally wrong and contravenes with human rights (Bellamy, 2006; Sussman, 2005; Rejali, 2009). With reference to Kantian ethical outlook torture is not justifiable or ethical since it is not in accordance to the set rules or laws. The ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ has set clear rules that forbid the use of torture. Conversely, some argue that torture is morally justified in certain extreme circumstances, especially when the lives of people are in danger (Levinson, 2002; Miller, 2005). However, based on the findings of this essay, it is apparent that, torture is never justified mainly because it undermines human dignity, can lead to the loss of innocent lives, it contravenes with human rights and it violates the victim’s will and autonomy (Bellamy, 2006; Sussman, 2005; Rejali, 2009). References Bellamy, J.A. (2006). “No pain, no gain? Torture and ethics in the war on terror.” International Affairs 82(1), 121-148. Carll, E. K. (2007). Trauma Psychology: Issues in Violence, Disaster, Health and Illness. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing. Graham, G. (2010). Theories of ethics: An introduction to moral philosophy with a selection of classic readings. New York: Taylor & Francis. Greenberg, K. J. (2006). The Torture Debate in America. Cambridge. UK: Cambridge University Press. Heller, K. & Dubber, M. (2010). The Handbook of Comparative Criminal Law. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. Kant, I. (2009). Theory of Ethics. Memphis: General Books. Levinson, D. (2002). Encyclopedia of Crime and Punishment. London: SAGE. Miller, S. (2005). Is Torture Ever Morally Justifiable? International Journal of Applied Philosophy 19 (2), 179-192. Puybaret, E. (2008). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Geneva: UN Publication. Rejali, D. (2009). Torture and Democracy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Rehman, J. & Breau, S. (2007). Religion, Human Rights and International Law: A Critical Examination of Islamic State Practices. Leiden, Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff. Rodley, N. & Pollard, M. (2009). The Treatment of Prisoners under International Law. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Said, W. E. (2006). ‘Political Asylum and Torture: a comparative analysis’. Third World Quarterly 27(5), 871-883. Sussman, D. (2005). What’s Wrong with Torture? Philosophy and Public Affairs 33(1), 1-33. Read More