The Abuse of Human Rights in Prisons

1 Was the Leadership at Fault for the Abu Ghraib Prison Abuse?

Introduction The abuse of human rights is an issue that generates a lot of interest in the West and other democratic nations across the world. The revelations about the abuse of prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad is an issue that has left an indelible mark in the history of the U.S. handling of suspects in its cells abroad. The incident led to the prosecution of about seven soldiers from the 372 for crimes that included sodomizing prisoners and sexual abuse of naked prisoners (Center for Public Integrity, 2022). In addition, the incident raises concerns about who was responsible for the abuse.

Thesis The leaders were at fault for the Abu Ghraib prison abuse because it failed to take necessary measures to detect, act on, and prevent abuses in prisons.

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2 Systemic Leadership Failure The abuses of prisoners were linked to a massive leadership systemic failure that opened room for the torture of detainees without restriction. The military command structure managing the prison suffered from confused and overlapping lines of authority that made it have to provide oversight (Sabar, 2004). The absence of proper monitoring left officers that were manning each cell and interrogating prisoners with the latitude to do what they deemed good at the time. Lack of oversight of the subordinated units meant that riots and shootings in prison went undocumented, which encouraged the officers involved to torture and humiliate the prisoners at will. Lack of elaborate prison units’ surveillance, where military intelligence units and the CIA grilled detainees, gave room for abuse (Center for Public Integrity, 2022). Had prisons been closely monitored by the leadership, the incidents of torture would have been detected early, documented, and stopped. However, the army leadership did not know what was happening at various units of the Abu Ghraib prison.

Lack of Standardized Practices Poor leadership also resulted in a wide variation in prisoner handling at the prison. Each unit had its procedures or would vary the procedures at will. The administration should have ensured that the prison operated on standardized procedures to ensure that all prisoners were subjected to equal treatment (Sabar, 2004). Why the army command allowed officers managing each prison unit to run their affairs without proper coordination points out to ineffectiveness of the leadership. The military is known for a strict chain of command, which was compromised in the case of the Abu Ghraib prison management. In an ideal military leadership, the junior officers take instructions from their seniors. They cannot act outside set rules and standards without inviting disciplinary actions against them (Center for Public Integrity, 2022). However,

3 the chain of command had a lot of lapses that created a disorganized culture of how prisoners were handled.

Poor Monitoring of the Prison The commanders also failed to regularly visit the Abu Ghraib prison to monitor the situation inside the cells and various units. The leadership should lead from the ground; ensure that it has first-hand information about the situation in the prisons (Bartone, 2010). However, this was not attainable at Abu Ghraib prison because of the laxity of the army commanders physically inspecting the facility and offering guidance where the need arose. The U.S. commanders play an essential role in upholding the country's values and ideals. In this respect, their failure to conduct regular visits to inspect prisoners offered the officers in charge an opportunity to commit atrocities against prisoners and get away with it (Sabar, 2004). The importance of inspections is to ensure that there are enough checks and balances to guarantee better handling of prisoners.

Blame of Military Commanders by Investigation Reports In the reaction to the revelation about the widespread abuse of prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, reproached Karpinski for what he terms as failure to implement clear standards, proficiency, and leadership.

He decried the problem as the cause of abuse of detainees, affirming the view that leadership was at fault. The leaders failed to perform their duties diligently, creating room for massive violation of prisoners’ rights. The investigation into the incident by Taguba resulted in the recommendation for disciplinary action against Karpinski and his subordinates. The report also proposed that Col. Thomas M. Pappas, commander of the 205th Military Intelligence Brigade

4 based in Wiesbaden, Germany, be reprimanded for his failure to provide oversight over military police managing the Abu Ghraib prison at the time the abuse was committed (Sabar, 2004).

Complicity The leadership could also have been complicit in the torture of prisoners. The duration of torture in prison raises concerns about the possible involvement of the army leadership. The leadership had some idea about the poor handling of detainees but did not act because it overlooked the need to protect the rights of prisoners who were treated as the worst enemies (Sabar, 2004). In the case of Abu Ghraib abuse, the commanders failed to provide leadership by indirectly supporting the torture. The torture was partly justified on the ground that they would be dangerous people who had caused much harm to the U.S. and its allies. The leadership failure was partly due to the common notion that prisoners were evil people who did not deserve mercy (Bartone, 2010). However, the leadership has to uphold the American values of human rights and freedoms, regardless of the situation. It is a duty they are supposed to enforce to junior officers.

Poor Training of Soldiers The army commanders, including Brigadier Gen. Janis Karpinski of the 800th Military Police Brigade, failed to train their troops little in the humane handling of prisoners. Training is critical in helping the troops learn to manage prisoners without violating their basic human rights and freedoms (Sabar, 2004). Training of soldiers is handy in determining how they behave in a particular situation. The CIA agents who were involved in interrogating prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison were not well trained to conduct their work without resorting to unwarranted torture and humiliation. It is most likely that the CIA agents and soldiers may have been used to mistreating adversaries, which impacted how they perceived their relationship with prisoners.

The leadership should have taken necessary measures to prepare their soldiers for managing

5 prisoners in a more dignified manner (Bartone, 2010). Consequently, the failure of the commanders to equip their officers on how to treat prisoners with dignity underpins its fault that led to massive human abuse at the prison.

Failure to Act on Complaints The leadership also failed to act on frequent problems within their units. The problems included low morale and unhealthy relationships between soldiers, which contributed to the mistreatment of prisoners (Sabar, 2004). Poor morale and stress pushed soldiers to direct their frustration to prisoners. The leadership must ensure that officers under its control are helped to solve issues affecting their job performance (Bartone, 2010). The issues can vary from person to workplace environment. The negligence in handling problems at the prison created room for anarchy, which was seen in how each unit operated using its own rules and ideas.

Poor Coordination The poor coordination between leaders involved with the activities at the prison.

According to the report by Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba, military officers, engaged in misconduct, and lack of good relationships meant no coordination (Sabar, 2004). As a result, an officer did not receive the needed guidance. Instead, he was left to create the procedures or rules he deemed appropriate to manage the situation. As a result, the 800th M.P. Brigade suffered adverse cause leadership gaps that resulted in a lack of uniformity in how soldiers communicated, resulting in varying standards and principles.

Conclusion The leadership was at fault for the Abu Ghraib abuse because of its widespread failure to perform oversight, train soldiers, and act on complaints to prevent mistreatment of prisoners. The army leadership in charge of the prisoner and interrogation of prisoners failed to adhere to and

6 enforce standard practices, leaving soldiers manning the prison to act without control. Moreover, the abuse was widespread and prolonged, meaning that the leadership failed to timely detect and manage the crisis in time because of negligence. The subsequent investigations into the incident affirmed the leadership gap that encouraged torment and degradation of detainees at Abu Ghraib against the world's expectation.

7 References Bartone, P. (2010). Preventing prisoner abuse: Leadership lessons of Abu Ghraib. Ethics & Behavior, 20(2), 161-173.

Center for Public Integrity. (2022). Abu Ghraib prison scandal. Center for Public Integrity. https://publicintegrity.org/politics/abu-ghraib-prison-scandal-2/.

Sabar, A. (2004). Army faults leadership for abuse of prisoners. Baltimoresun.com. https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bal-te.leadership04may04-story.html.