Morningside Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) joins with the National Religious Campaign Against Torture in our belief that torture is a moral issue. We condemn the use of torture for any purpose, either to further the objectives of war or to prevent terrorism. War and terrorism inspire fear, but retaliation and torture do not prevent them. Torture by any means, whether direct or by proxy, is immoral. Torture destroys the humanity of the tortured, the torturer and those who have knowledge of it. It fails to defend the sanctity of life.
Civilized nations agree that these techniques are
immoral. As Friends with a commitment to integrity, we call on the United
States to honor its treaty obligations to the 1949 Geneva Conventions, their
1977 Protocols, and the UN Convention against Torture. By not honoring these
agreements, we endanger our own soldiers and civil society itself; according to
military leaders, torture does not lead to accurate information. Failing to
maintain our integrity as a nation destroys trust and undermines our ability to
lead effectively.
We agree with William Penn, Quaker founder of
Pennsylvania, who once said, “A good end cannot sanctify evil means; nor must
we ever do evil that good may come of it.” Let the United States abolish its
use of torture now.