Obama Administration Blocks Release of Detainee Abuse Photos

"We think the photos are an important part of the historical record. They are critical to the ongoing national conversationabout accountability for torture," Jaffer said. "It sets a bad precedent for the government to be suppressing information that relates to government misconduct."

While I have no interest in seeing photographs of torture, I do agree that suppressing evidence of misconduct is a bad precedent. However, Obama has shown that he is not going to seek accountability for the misconduct that occurred prior to his administration, so this is not much of a surprise.

Key points in the article...

"Defense Secretary Robert Gates has blocked the public release of any more pictures... Federal courts had rejected the government's arguments to block their release, so Congress gave Gates new powers to keep them private... the order covers all photographs from investigations related to the treatment of individuals captured or detained in military operations outside the United States between Sept. 11, 2001, and Jan. 22, 2009."

Granted Obama signed the law, but since this only applies to photos taken before he came into office, I take this to mean that no one better commit any crimes after he came into office, "or else"! And although I hate the idea of keeping things like this secret, if indeed it is to reduce the amount of fuel provided to combatants in Afghanistan while we're there, then I can see the point. But it also indicates to me that he has no intention of staying there very long. I expect that once we are out of Afghanistan, the photos will be released.

This is a grave disappointment to me to hear that these photos will not see the light of the public eye. 'The past is the past.' is a poor argument the our President as presented when faced with this question. Torture should be brought into the light and the people responsible for the hideous crime should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.