Thousands of New Prisoners Overwhelm Iraqi System

[underpants]

Source: NY Times

BAGHDAD — The increase in American troops in Iraq over the past year has been accompanied by waves of new Iraqi detainees, inundating the country’s already overburdened prisons and courts, American officials said Wednesday.

American advisers say Iraq’s nascent justice system does not have enough prison beds, investigative judges or lawyers to absorb the thousands of suspects that have been detained since last summer by the augmented American and Iraqi security forces. More than half of the 26,000 prisoners are still awaiting trial, and some have languished for years, American officials said.

Mike Pannek, the program manager of the Iraq Corrections Program, a Justice Department program, said Justice Ministry prisons were filled beyond their capacity. One of the government’s largest prisons is a temporary installation at the Rusafa legal complex in Baghdad. Mr. Pannek said that nearly all of the 6,647 detainees at Rusafa had been captured since the American force was increased early last year, and that 6,079 of them had not been found guilty of any crime.


Thousands more prisoners are held by other agencies, despite findings in 2006 that such disparate detainee systems hindered oversight and led to human rights abuses. In 2006, American troops determined that several Interior Ministry jails were being used by Shiite militias to torture and execute Sunni prisoners. Interior Ministry officials promised to transfer all their prisoners to Justice Ministry facilities.


Mr. Pannek estimated that Iraq needed space for 50,000 prisoners, and said there were plans to provide about 20,000 more prison beds over the next year.

Guards affiliated with Shiite militias regularly freed their comrades in arms and they abused Sunni prisoners, he said.

“We’ve had reports of them taking prisoners out of their cells in the dark of the night and smacking them around,” Mr. Pannek said.







Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/14/world/middleeast/14justice.html

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*GASP* TOOOOOORTURE!!!

Hell didn't Scalia say just the other day that he saw no problem with cops slapping around a prisoner here and there :shrug: Welcome to Dick Cheney's Iraq.

[mwb970]

1. If you can't kill 'em, jail 'em! /nt

[tekisui]

2. Make the "John McCain's Iraq"

He wants to own what happens in Iraq. Just remember, he owns it now, he owns it in August.

[pattmarty]

3. Jesus, sounds like my home town here in the US.

[Heywood J]

4. Hmmm...

In 2006, American troops determined that several Interior Ministry jails were being used by Shiite militias to torture and execute Sunni prisoners. Interior Ministry officials promised to transfer all their prisoners to Justice Ministry facilities.
<...>
Guards affiliated with Shiite militias regularly freed their comrades in arms and they abused Sunni prisoners, he said.

Under the current "justification" for invading Iraq ("Saddam was a very bad man and did bad things"), wouldn't this justify another invasion to change the regime? That would mean Bush has completely and utterly failed at all stated goals regarding the country. That fact should be hung around the necks of every candidate who wants to continue the war.

[Jacobin]

5. A far smaller percentage of the population than is jailed here

Scratching my head.

Since this is a 'journalist' the numbers are probably screwed up. Guess it helps them to not report about all the Iraqis that have been killed