If you are gay, living in Tehran (and like people everywhere), you wish to meet and greet other gays, requiring you to go to parks or places typically inhabited by gays, you may wish to be careful. Quite often the police will arrest you, take you back to their station where you will be repeatedly raped, before you may end up released. This also applies to prostitutes, although a little different. The police have a temporary marriage form filled out first, then they rape you, and send you on your way. There are consequences.
In Iran, many of the protestors from the June and December protests against the mullah-led regime, have reported arrests, beatings, and ongoing rape while they are held in the dreaded Evin prison. Many protestors (both male and female) who end up being released, tell of being raped regularly throughout the day by groups of men (guards). They tell of terrible humiliation - having photos taken (particularly of the men) being raped or forced to perform oral sex on guards, and then when released, threatened with the exposure of the photos. Those released are the lucky ones - many have simply disappeared in Evin. There are consequences.
In Egypt, the stories that are told of prison experiences make the events seen in 'Midnight Cowboy' appear downright desirable. A gay Arab, living in Israel, traveled to Egypt for a vacation that according to him was not for sex, rather just for rest. He was arrested, taunted, humiliated, and finally after several weeks thrown into a prison cell 6x6, in his underwear. He shared the cell with rats, roaches and all kinds of maggots. Even when an officer of the guard reprimanded the guards for allowing the Arab-Israeli guy to sit in maggots, rats, and shit, little changed - he received a very thin mattress, a shirt and pants, and a plastic trashcan that he could use as a toilet. Eventually after 40 or so days, the man was released.
You do not want to violate Ramadan in Egypt either - breaking Ramadan - eating or smoking during the month could get you arrested and thrown into prison, or fined up to $2,000. There are consequences.
In Pakistan, you surely do not want to violate Ramadan, or prison will be your future. During the 2009 Ramadan, estimates are that more than 3,300 people were arrested for eating or smoking during Ramadan (in public). Of these, 76 were foreigners. Depending upon when you are arrested, your visit to the court could be considerably much later. Spending one day in a Pakistani prison is worse than any time in a Turkish cell.
You most certainly do not want to go to Pakistan and make it known you are a Christian. Abid Javed Francis was 31 years old when he was arrested and beaten in front of his mother for not paying a bribe.
It was not simply the beating by one police officer, more than 11 were involved in the actions against Francis. The police demanded $125 from his family, who could not afford it, only to have the bribe increase to $625. His family lives in one of the slum settlements in Karachi.
The police upped the ante by charging Francis with illegal arms dealing - several days after he was arrested. Shortly after the illegal arms charge was filed, it was amended - Francis was charged with stealing a motorbike instead.
Francis was left in a cell in his underwear for a couple weeks, beaten constantly, and when his mother was told she could see him, he was stripped to his underwear, on a stretcher in an open area, exposed to chill. He died a few days later from internal injuries sustained while in custody. There are consequences.
One could go on all day and go through another thirty countries with these exact same, or worse stories, but it is truly a wasted effort, not to remember the lives taken by barbarians, but because it does not and will not change. If you plan on visiting Saudi Arabia, you might wish to leave your Bible at home. Some people do carry their Bible, perhaps because it is better reading than most novels, or perhaps because they wish to find a closeness with the past and with God that only the Bible, not Time magazine, can provide. If you do take your Bible with you, understand that at the airport you arrive at, you will be searched. Very much like the way you are searched leaving LAX or any American airport, you are searched as you ENTER the Saudi Kingdom. If they find a Bible on your person or in your cases, it will be, in front of you, put into a shredder. This is actually a better option than what could happen. If you have two or more Bibles, you are arrested, and put into a Saudi prison - perhaps Al Hayar. And for several days you could be chained to the door so that you cannot sit down or sleep. Sleep deprivation will then play havoc with your mind. In one case, one prisoner faced 5 days, then 11 days, then 14 days at different intervals, of sleep deprivation. There are consequences. Your cell is no different than the one in Egypt, and your food appears through a hatch in the door, a concrete slab serves as a bed and fluorescent lights beat down on you 24 hours a day. I would think that is preferable to nail extractions, or whippings, electric shock, or cigarette burns, which all occur.
You could end up in a Saudi prison for any number of reasons - as a Westerner, you sit down with a female who is an acquaintance from work, to talk about your family or your work, and bing bang bong, you are arrested. You cannot speak to a female who is not your wife, sister, mother. There are consequences.
The torture in Saudi prisons is perhaps more refined than you find in Pakistan, but no less deadly - beatings, punching, kicking, being thrown around the room, having your testicles stood on, being lain down on the floor in a hog-tied position, hands shackled behind your back and attached to your ankles, and then beaten over the soles of your feet, followed up perhaps by falanga - where you are strapped over a metal bar and hung upside-down off the floor so that your feet and buttocks are prominently exposed, and then you are beaten across the soles off the feet, across the buttock, and then every once in a while if you are unlucky, a quick shot into the scrotum.
Not that your Saudi captors care when they rape you (males) in an office down the hall from the cells, in the next room are dozens of officers or agents sitting and talking while you are raped. Everyone knows what happens and what goes on - in fact a few may take turns doing you, before you are returned to your cell. There are consequences.
Now, compare that to Guantanamo Bay.
Halal food, more than a dozen choices of food, three meals a day, time to worship, a Koran, doctors on call 24 hours a day, visits by the International Red Cross, attorney visits (all without American guards in the room during these visits).
This does not mean it is a paradise, certainly not. A window, bed, sheets, heating and air, food, toilet (to their specifications), clothing ... of course it is not a paradise. The majority of the 300 or so men held in Guantanamo were caught attempting to kill American soldiers and or as a result of direct links to terrorist groups or individuals. Is there anyone innocent among the 300 or so. It is not impossible, but it is not likely.
Use common sense, which I understand is in short supply by 30-40% of the American electorate and quite likely a larger percent of the world body, but try. Why would CIA or the army, or whoever it is that puts people into Guantanamo, spend the energy, time, and money to put someone who has, with 100% certainty, no connection to terrorism or anyone involved in terrorism into a prison that will fill space and cost money. Ok, so they don't care about the cost. Flying a plane across the world with a few people on it, fuel costs to transport to Cuba, the food and upkeep for the guy while he stays in Guantanamo, and the eventual release of details about the prisoner ... all for no reason. I apologize, but I do not believe CIA works that way as a matter of policy. Nor does anyone in our system. Now, in Egypt, the cost to keep the guy is maybe a gallon of gruel a month - reasonable, and doable. Not going to break any bank.
Now to Abu Ghraib - what happened at Abu Ghraib. Humiliation. Simulated sex. Prisoners forced to perform oral sex or simulated oral sex on other prisoners. Fear tactics - prisoners were made to believe they could be electrocuted. Most was psychological. The dogs did not bite them, rape them, eat them, or piss on them. The guards did not beat them nor rape them. Abu Ghraib is a prison divided in two. One half of the prison is for criminals, run by the Iraqis. Common criminals get put into the Abu Ghraib prison. In the middle is the administrative, medical section. And on the other end is the terrorist prisoner side. Common run of the mill criminals did not get put into the political section run by the Americans, BUT which included Iraqi doctors who would visit the prisoners or care for any prisoner taken to them for medical issues. Several doctors who were involved in working at Abu Ghraib have written about their knowledge of events and how disproportionate the coverage by the US media of killers and terrorists.
I do not suggest the images show tolerable behavior by American guards, rather they should have been relieved of duty and dishonorably discharged.
The electrical threat - not real. It was imaginary, unlike the electrical shocks that did occur in Saudi Arabia. It was intended to make them believe ... and they did. Was it torture - it was certainly very strong psychological intimidation, right before they got to return to their cells, get dressed, eat, and sleep on their bunk.
It does not in any way, remotely come close to the actions in ANY country I mentioned above or for that matter in any of the other 30-40 I could go into detail about.
The men in this section of the prison were not common people - were any innocent, more likely yes, given how some of them ended up in Abu Ghraib (as compared to Guantanamo). Many of the men involved were within the Saddam regime, torturers, or involved in efforts to undermine US control and kill Americans.
Do I feel bad for any of them? IF any were truly innocent of any and all charges, yes. For the rest - no.
Americans were held hostage by the Iraqis. When the US invaded Iraq, we moved so quickly that supply lines had to catch up, and a few times, were lost and attacked. Lori Piestewa was the driver of one such truck part of the 507th, a mechanical repair team, used to service or repair vehicles. In the front seat with her was Jessica Lynch. Lori Piestewa was the first female and first mother, murdered in Iraq. I understand that for the bleeding hearts, she isn't a part of any story - but she should be.
When their vehicle came under attack, she was wounded. When she and Lynch realized they could not continue the fighting, along with several other males in their group, they surrendered. Piestewa was wounded, but alive when they surrendered. The Iraqi killers, shot her dead, in the vehicle, and took Private Lynch. Lori Piestewa was not only the first female and first American mother murdered in Iraq, but she was also a Hopi and Mexican. She had two children, and she bravely fought off the murderers until the very end. Unfortunately, Lori did not look like her friend. Jessica Lynch was also wounded, but she was blonde, blue eyed, and fair skinned. She was of more interest to the Iraqi killers than Piestewa.
Several other men were taken with Lynch. Wounded, perhaps, but alive. How do we know this? The murderers had little time before US forces would arrive on the scene. They had to act quickly and carrying away dead bodies is not an easy task.
We also saw how these prisoners were treated by the Iraqi government and their killers.
They were all dead, while the above fool, marched around lifting and picking at the soldiers dead bodies all the while smiling for the camera. This was shown on Iraqi TV in the hours before US forces ended the regime of death.
Perhaps you have seen the above image, perhaps the ones in color. It shows an odd image of several dead Americans, with their pants undone at the button or zipper. Odd. Almost as if someone was inspecting them under their pants, either before they were executed or after. Of course the Iraqis claim the men were not executed. Hard to believe when the soldier has a hole in his head - you know, the place where his helmet was. Our military investigated these images and the events, after we took Baghdad and had access to these people - the men were indeed executed, and then hastily buried in a shallow grave, in a pile.
When Lynch was freed, the Americans involved located the bodies, and without implements, dug up the bodies by hand, all the while acting as quickly as possible given the bombings and shooting outside the hospital, to take them home.
Jessica Lynch has never spoken or written of the events in the room she was held, and that is her right - no one should have to relive it. In all likelihood, the men involved were killed and are now being diddled by Satan.
There is a difference in how Iraqis were treated in Abu Ghraib and how American war prisoners were treated by the Iragi Government, how terrorists are treated in Guantanamo, and how foreigners are treated in Arab prisons. The media ignore some, play down others, and blow up into a mountain only what Americans did in Abu Ghraib. As a result of the US media blowing Abu Ghraib up into an atrocity to end all atrocities, more than a dozen people died in rioting and attacks around the world, when that information became public. It became a rallying cry for every anti-American on earth, and more recently, resulted in the deaths of a half-dozen Americans in Afghanistan - at least, according to the bombers wife.
By SELCAN HACAOGLU, Associated Press Writer
Fri Jan 8, 7:24 am ET
ISTANBUL – The Turkish wife of a Jordanian doctor who killed seven CIA employees in a suicide attack in Afghanistan says her husband was outraged over the treatment of Iraqis at Abu Ghraib prison and the U.S.-led invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Defne Bayrak, the wife of bomber Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi, said in an interview with The Associated Press that his hatred of the United States had motivated her husband to sacrifice his life on Dec. 30 in what he regarded as a holy war against the U.S.
Bayrak also said Friday, "I think the war against the United States must go on."
Turkish police questioned and released Bayrak on Thursday. But she says police confiscated a book she had written called "Osama bin Laden the Che Guevera of the East."
There are consequences for your actions. There are only two sides (with slight degrees of variation on one side and none on the other) - you are either on one side or the other, you are not unbiased in a war that can end one of two ways. For me, it is clear - I want my family, my children, my grand children, my civilization to survive, and I accept the necessary actions that must be taken to ensure the survival of our way of life. Winston Churchill said it long before, and I am certain scores of historical figures before him - we need those men who will do, what the rest of us will not, to ensure we can sleep safely in our beds at night.
I understand the philosophical argument - we are better, we must show we are better, we ... and we will lose while we show how great we are, our children will be enslaved or killed, and our culture destroyed. But, you will be able to write in a journal, that will be hidden away for several hundred years, that we did not infringe upon anyones liberty or wants, wishes, or feelings.
I am cognizant of the emotional reaction opponents will have to my comparisons - they will argue I have no idea or clue what I am saying, that nothing is similar, and I am conflating issues that are wholly unrelated. I would argue that they are related and more so, show Americans as a great deal more compassionate and tolerant than any Arab prison / country, even at the worst of Abu-Ghraib. Yes, bibles and sexual preference, and eating during Ramadan are different from terrorism and from war criminals. I would expect the preferential Bible eater to be treated better (I combined them intentionally). A country that imprisons someone for possessing a Bible, beats and tortures them for whatever their crime, beheads them, or rapes them repeatedly for being gay, and fines and imprisons people for eating during Ramadan (which is not by the way, religiously sanctioned by the Koran - the actions which are taken by police) - will be even more horrifying in the treatment of political prisoners or terrorists. They do not humiliate, they rape. The humiliation we were shown, was bad, but does not come close to anything we know of the treatment people face every day in Arab prisons. We are also not selecting random people to imprison, individuals selected or collected are far less innocent than their lawyers claim. After all, OJ's lawyers forever claimed he was innocent, still do. The proof is in what happens when these killers, I mean innocent men, are released from their 1 Star lodging in Guantanamo. They very nearly and immediately go off and blow themselves up, trying to kill as many innocents as possible. I hope their lawyers can sleep.
There are consequences in the war against terror, and for those individuals who do not understand we are at war with a fascist ideology, they need to stand aside and allow those 'rough men' Churchill spoke of, to do their duty. Even if the individuals do not want to be saved, the 'rough men' will save them anyway, because that is what they do. They know the consequences if they don't.
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