It's important for people to understand that in a democracy, there will be a full
investigation. In other words, we want to know the truth. In our
country, when there's an allegation of abuse ... there will be a full
investigation, and justice will be delivered.
... It's very important for
people and your listeners to understand that in our country, when an
issue is brought to our attention on this magnitude, we act. And we
act in a way in which leaders are willing to discuss it with the
media. ... In other words, people want to know the truth. That stands
in contrast to dictatorships. A dictator wouldn't be answering
questions about this. A dictator wouldn't be saying that the system
will be investigated and the world will see the results of the
investigation.
Bush personally authorized every technique revealed at Abu Ghraib. He refused to act upon the International Committee of the Red Cross's report that found that he had personally authorized the torture of prisoners, in violation of the Geneva Conventions and the UN Convention on Torture and domestic law against cruel and inhuman treatment. A refusal to investigate and prosecute Red Cross allegations of torture is itself a violation of the Geneva Accords.
