George Bush Cuts And Runs From Torture Case In Switzerland

Apparently, former president George W. Bush does "cut and run." On February 7, 2011, two torture victims were to have filed criminal complaints for torture against Bush in Geneva. Bush was due to speak there at a charity gala on February 12. On the eve of the case filing, Bush abruptly canceled his trip, choosing instead to attend the Super Bowl in Dallas. Why would he rather be in Dallas than in Geneva? For one thing, Swiss authorities are under a legal obligation to start a preliminary criminal investigation if a torturer is on Swiss soil. But, thanks to Attorney General Eric Holder's refusal to apply US law to investigate torture, Bush isn't even breaking a sweat in Dallas - or anywhere in the US, for that matter.

The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), along with the Berlin-based European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, prepared the detailed case in Switzerland, with support from the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). Swiss law requires the presence of an alleged torturer on Swiss soil before a preliminary investigation can be opened. Because Bush cancelled, the complaints could not be filed, as the basis for legal jurisdiction no longer existed. However, the fact that Bush authorized torture remains, and it is harder than ever to hide now, on the ninth anniversary of his decision that the Geneva Conventions did not apply to the conflict with al-Qaeda or to so-called "unlawful combatants."

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