Torture during the Algerian War and its relevance on the War on Terror

During the Algerian War of Independence (1954-1962), the French forces mercilessly tortured their opponents. Although the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN) also tortured their enemies, the French military use of torture was more widespread.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Torture during the Algerian War and its relevance on the War on Terror specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Torture is defined as â€Å"any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him, or a third person, punishing him for an act he or a third person has done†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (United Nations, para.3). The French experience during the Algerian war proves that the use of torture, though regrettable, is important to defeat successfully terrorist organizations around the world. Therefore, is the use of torture justifiable in some instances? The milit ary combat of the FLN was being propelled by self-determination and the French state was equally determined to win the war. The French forces did not acknowledge that the colonial conflict was indeed a war, as this would recognize their opponents as a legitimate entity; therefore, it was until August 1999 that they stopped calling it â€Å"fight against terrorism.† That is why although France was bound by the Geneva conventions it had signed in 1951; it consistently used brutal warfare tactics in fighting against the FLN. As shown by the experience of the French military during the Algerian war, torture is a good way of gaining timely and relevant information from terrorists. For example, in an imaginary situation when a terrorist has planted a nuclear bomb in Washington City, the detonation is going to take place in the next forty-five minutes, and cause widespread destruction. However, when the terrorist is captured, although he knows the exact location of the bomb, he is n ot giving any relevant information. What is the best thing to do in such a scenario? Is he left to go scot-free because torturing him will interfere with his â€Å"human rights?† If the individual is not forced to give out the vital information, then thousands of innocent lives are at risk. In such an instance, the choice of the use of torture is allowable in order to acquire certain life-saving information that could not be retrieved easily. Therefore, the use of torture as a tool in the global War on Terror is important in defeating terrorist groups around the world. Concerning this issue, Levin states, â€Å"there are situations in where torture is not only permissible, but morally mandatory† (para.2). Levin illustrates how liberal societies do not allow the use of torture, and how other governments fear the fury of the United Nations if they are suspected of using or even planning to use it; however, he gives a different opinion on this attitude. Levin terms the us e of torture as â€Å"a weapon that is important in winning the War on Terror.† At one point, he addresses the above imaginary situation by saying, â€Å"if you caught the terrorist, could you sleep nights, knowing that millions died because you could not bring yourself to apply the electrodes?† (para.4). Some people argue that the use of torture against terrorists is unconstitutional; however, the thousands of lives lost after a terrorist incident far outweighs issues of constitutionality.Advertising Looking for essay on political sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More More so, is the use of torture barbaric? The many innocent lives lost due to negligence is more barbaric (Buchanan, para.2).Therefore, the use of torture is permissible in extreme cases since in some intricate situations, it is a matter of balancing between mass murder and the life of one or a few people. As Levin puts it, â€Å"letting millio ns of innocents die in deference to one who flaunts his guilt is moral cowardice, unwillingness to dirty one’s hands† (para.4). According to this statement, if harsh interrogation tactics can be used as a way of protecting the lives of the innocent, then no one should shy from using them when it is necessary. When a nation fails to use torture, it puts thousands of lives at risk due to terrorist threats. This makes the nation to portray the same cowardice being portrayed by the terrorists. During the Algerian war, the French military did not shy off from torturing the terrorists who were potentially dangerous. If these harsh tactics could be used, then the strategies used by terrorists to wreak havoc could have been discovered by now. Assuming that a victim does not die after he or she has been harshly interrogated, the victim will less likely commit the same crime. Currently, most of the interrogation methods available are laughable and dumb. The French soldiers succes sively used torture to extract vital information from their opponents. These punishments were meant to ensure that the victims either co-operated with them or confessed some of the enemy schemes. In some circumstances, the use of torture, besides being essential, is the only available option. For example, in 1994, an Israeli was held captive by some Palestinian terrorists. After searching for clues, the Israeli police detained the driver of the car, which was used for carrying out the attack. For them to get the information about the whereabouts of the kidnappers, they were compelled to torture the driver to extract some useful information from him. This is just one example of how torture as played a significant role in the war against terrorism. The Algerian war induced the French military to use torture against its opponents. The French troops were in a difficult situation since most of the time it was not easy to differentiate their opponents from civilians at first sight. This s ituation was worsened by the fact that their opponents rarely wore easily identifiable war clothes. More so, the civilians were well informed of enemy movements; thus, most of the time they were under suspicion from the French military.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Torture during the Algerian War and its relevance on the War on Terror specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More During the war, every French soldier was obliged to be alert and give all the relevant information about the enemy by collecting all the vital intelligence information (Branche, 548). Therefore, to achieve this, the soldiers sometimes tortured their opponents. Against this background, torture was permitted as a way of combating the increasing threat of terrorists’ activities. Though the use of harsh tactics is regrettable, it is good way of gathering intelligence information about the movement of terrorists around the world. Another reason why the French used torture during the Algerian war was to provide it with all the necessary resources for the protection of its citizenry. When a country wants to preserve a strong national security, it is obliged to use harsh interrogation methods as the best alternative. In a situation when torture is used, prompted by the urge to save innocent lives, by just getting vital information from one individual, then it should be justifiable. The nation of France had always upheld principles of freedom, from freedom of speech to freedom of religion. Nevertheless, when the safety of its citizens was under threat, it had to sacrifice some of its rights. This was to make the country as safe as possible because insurgents could easily enter the country from Algeria. These rights, which were sacrificed, ensured that its citizens at home and army in the combat zone were safe from acts of terrorism. As much as the use of harsh interrogations can be considered as an inhumane practice, it shoul d be used when the need arises. To fight the growing insurgency in the world, torture is a vital tool that can be used effectively to achieve this. The formal arguments against the use of torture are absolute; they state that it has no exceptions. This widely held statement is not true because it is a misguided opinion that always comes from social commentators. This type of absolutist has created a void between good intentions and good consequences. As mush as the use of torture sounds inhumane, it is necessary to defeat successfully terrorist organizations around the world. In extreme circumstances, as experienced by the French military, radical measures ought to be done to avoid mass murder. If this consists of making a terrorist to feel pain in order to preserve thousands of innocent lives, then it is permissible. However, it is important to note that torture is more beneficial when used as a means of preventing future evils, rather than as a form of punishment. Terrorism will n ot be completely obliterated from the face of the earth if individuals settle down and stop making efforts to win the War on Terror. The use of torture, in extreme cases, is one way of making efforts to win the war.Advertising Looking for essay on political sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Works Cited Branche, Raphaelle. â€Å"Torture of terrorists? Use of torture in a â€Å"war against terrorism†: justifications, methods, and effects: the case of France in Algeria.† International Review of the Red Cross 89.867 (2007): 543-560. Print. Buchanan, Patrick J. â€Å"The case for torture.† Worldnetdaily. 10 March 2010. Web. https://www.wnd.com/2003/03/17663/ Levin, Michael. â€Å"The case for torture.† People.brandeis. N.d. Web. http://people.brandeis.edu/~teuber/torture.html United Nations. â€Å"Convention against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.† UN convention. 10 Dec. 1987. Web. https://www.un.org/ruleoflaw/blog/document/convention-against-torture-and-other-cruel-inhuman-or-degrading-treatment-or-punishment-commentary/ This essay on Torture during the Algerian War and its relevance on the War on Terror was written and submitted by user Rumiko Fujikawa to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Modern Day Epic Story Essays - Sports Cars, Coupes, Porsche

Modern Day Epic Story Essays - Sports Cars, Coupes, Porsche Modern Day Epic Story EPIC STORY Looking back I underestimated the true capability of Carrera. Carrera was a man of intellectual prowess and had a supernatural ability to open car doors and start them with his mind. He was only five foot six inches tall with a medium build and he always wore a fishermans hat to hide the fact he didnt have any hair. Despite being only thirty-one years old, he managed to pull off the biggest car stings in the history of automobiles. With the help of unknown outside parties he managed to steal every type of sport car imaginable. He stole cars all over North America and was undetected by the authorities. If you havent guessed by now, he got his name from a sports car. Does the Porsche Carrera sound familiar? Porsche was the car he favored over the most. Why he didnt prefer the Corvette or Ferrari I dont know. His name would become a crucial factor in the story later on. After so many news cases of reported stolen sports cars, the authorities had to step up their investigation in finding this elusive thief. This was about the time they turned to me. My name is Burt Carver. I am 48 years old and had been retired from the FBI for 3 years when they called me back. At first I was not particularly interested in returning to work. My wife didnt want me to go back because she wanted me to spend more time with her. I gave it a couple days of thought and then I decided to return for this case only. My wife wasnt pleased but my interest in sports cars caused me to return to work regardless of what she told me. I went back to my old stamping grounds where I had solved so many cases. After 3 years of being away, it felt good to be back at the J Edgar Hoover Building. Even though it was my first day back, I was all business. I sat down around a big table with a lot of rookies and my old boss, Heath McGregor. He and I had always been on good terms with each other. He told us that the only information on this car thief was that he traveled all over North America stealing very expensive sports cars. In each stolen car file, the dealers reported they had all sets of keys even though the car was missing. Heath recommended that a tip phone line should be advertised and that the person who helped bring about the apprehension of this assailant should be rewarded handsomely. Heath called the project Mission Z3, named after the BMW sports car. When we marketed the hotline, we got numerous calls. Many were bogus but one of the callers sounded convincing to us. The caller used a pay phone in order to keep his location secret. The callers name was Webster Murdock and he described how sometimes while he was working at a Porsche dealership, a young bald man would come in and harass his boss. The guy would request private information that his boss couldnt disclose. One day Webster asked his boss what that guy was after and his boss said, He wanted information on where Porsche would be selling their brand new, very rare car. When we learned of this new information we sought every Porsche dealership across America. Meanwhile, Heath learned of another robbery in which a Honda S2000 had been stolen. Heath was becoming frustrated about how the thief was getting away with more cars and wasnt even having to work hard to do it. After weeks of calling different sources, I finally reached a man who worked at a Porsche dealership in Orlando, Florida who remembered speaking to a short, bald gentlemen. I flew down to Florida and interviewed the man. He recalled that the bald mans name was Carrera. I thought that that was a good name for a person who liked Porsche cars. I asked the dealer to give me the address and number to the Porsche showroom and thought I had an idea of how to catch this thief. When I returned to D.C., I told Heath about