Today's readings linked me to an article by William R. Polk on Torture
(guest editorial on Juan Cole's blog)

He was writing about lessons (not learned) from the French handling of the Algerians during the French-Algerian War.

"One of the most influential books on that war, written by Colonel Roger Trinquier, a French paratrooper, argued that torture is to “modern war” what the machinegun was to World War I. Horrified by what they learned was happening, French critics called torture the “cancer of democracy.” Using it, the French not only destroyed their claim to legitimacy in Algeria but also nearly destroyed French civil life.

If there was a lesson to be learned by the Algerian experience, it certainly was not heeded.

Influenced by the French – Trinquier’s book was translated and made available by the CIA "



Out of curiosity, I googled Colonel Roger Trinquier.

The top returns were US militiary sites and this was an interesting item from http://www.usafa.af.mil/jscope/JSCOPE03/Schrepel03.html (U.S Airforce).

It sheds a bit of light on the widening distance between the "from the trenches" military leaders and the Bush/Rumsfield approach.

"Algiers should instruct us about the ethical landmines and limitations of using soldiers in urban terrain, in and among civilians. In the near future, American soldiers may be forced by strategic or operational necessity to operate in urban terrain among a hostile indigenous population. One may assume such battlefields would necessarily be found abroad. In reality, the likelihood of conducting urban operations in domestic cities within the United States should not be ruled out. Wherever an enemy adopts asymmetric attacks, including terrorism, American soldiers must respond to challenge to the American way of war. Combating terrorism in urban areas pits soldiers into uncomfortable and unfamiliar roles. In order to defeat a terrorist enemy, American soldiers at all levels of command will require prior training and education to prevent military operations from becoming moral quagmires without victory or justice. While the message for general officers is plain, political leaders must not be excluded from the educational process. Taking the Pontius Pilate route of symbolically washing one’s hands after the event is no longer a permissible option."

And warnings from the Army:

"This requires an extremely capable intelligence infrastructure endowed with human sources and deep cultural knowledge. Indeed, intelligence is key. As the Commander of the US Army's 1st Armored Division in Iraq, Major General Martin Dempsey, observed in November 2003, "Fundamentally, here in Baghdad we do two things: We're either fighting for intelligence or we're fighting based on that intelligence." Despite unparalleled improvements in military intelligence, the United States does not seem to have the depth and breadth required in human intelligence (humint) and cultural intelligence arenas. Arabic linguists are lacking. .....Mistakes made in the process of waging a counterinsurgency war often reinforce an insurgent's propaganda. For example, accidental shootings, deaths during interrogations, misdirected raids, and inappropriate behavior by new police organizations fuel insurgent claims that the new regime is corrupt or unable to protect the population"

Reading further, it seems that Lieutenant-Colonel Roger Trinquier was reportedly the architect of brutal repression in Algiers. The necessity of "secrecy" was stressed rather than a push to not do the wrong. We see that in the administrations response to the torture.. basically a "we're sorry this got out and the troops will no longer be allowed access to cameras" .

This thinking was behind the atrocities (covertly sponsored by the US-CIA) perpetrated in South America, Latin America, Africa, etc. over the past 50 years. The effectiveness?? We are the most hated nation in the world... We have been instrumental in the "disappearance" of millions of people under the guise of "humanitiy" and "democracy".

I just don't get it !!