Physicians for Human Rights
Through evidence, change is possible.PHR Letter to Secretary Gates Applauds Declassification of Report on Interrogation Techniques and Calls for Remedial Measures
May 2007
In a letter sent on May 31, 2007, to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, PHR responds to the recently declassified Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report, "Review of DoD-Directed Investigations of Detainee Abuse." In the report, the OIG details how interrogation techniques used in recent years by the military were developed using techniques from the Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) program, a module designed to train military personnel in how to resist torture when captured by a ruthless enemy. The PHR letter calls on Secretary Gates to specifically ban techniques developed from the Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape program, to establish ethical guidelines for all health professionals involved in interrogations, and to declassify and release all additional materials pertaining to these matters.