George Bush - John Hopkins Univ. - on contractors in Iraq (2006)
Asked why contractors in Iraq are not being held to any military or accounting legal standards.
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"Auditors were unable to verify that the Iraqi money was spent for its intended purpose. In one case, they raised the possibility that thousands of "ghost employees" were on an unnamed ministry's payroll.
"CPA staff identified at one ministry that although 8,206 guards were on the payr
More..oll, only 602 guards could be validated," the audit report states. "Consequently, there was no assurance funds were not provided for ghost employees.""
[/URL="http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/01/30/iraq.audit/"]Click here to read article in full[/URL]
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"A military report into the Abu Ghraib case - parts of which were made available to the Guardian - makes it clear that private contractors were supervising interrogations in the prison, which was notorious for torture and executions under Saddam Hussein.
One civilian contractor was accused of raping a young male prisoner but has not been charged because military law has no jurisdiction over him.
Hired guns from a wide array of private security firms are playing a central role in the US-led occupation of Iraq.
The killing of four private contractors in Falluja on March 31 led to the current siege of the city.
But this is the first time the privatisation of interrogation and intelligence-gathering has come to light. The investigation names two US contractors, CACI International Inc and the Titan Corporation, for their involvement in the functioning of Abu Ghraib."
<a href=""http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1206725,00.html"" target="_blank">Click here to read article in full</a>
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Transcript:
"Q: Thank you, Mr. President. It's an honor to have you here. I'm a first-year student in South Asia studies. My question is in regards to private military contractors. Uniform Code of Military Justice does not apply to these contractors in Iraq. I asked your Secretary of Defense a couple months ago what law governs their actions.
Bush: I was going to ask him. Go ahead. (Laughter.) Help. (Laughter.)
Q: I was hoping your answer might be a little more specific. (Laughter.) Mr. Rumsfeld answered that Iraq has its own domestic laws which he assumed applied to those private military contractors. However, Iraq is clearly not currently capable of enforcing its laws, much less against — over our American military contractors. I would submit to you that in this case, this is one case that privatization is not a solution. And, Mr. President, how do you propose to bring private military contractors under a system of law?
Bush: I appreciate that very much. I wasn't kidding — (laughter.) I was going to — I pick up the phone and say, Mr. Secretary, I've got an interesting question. (Laughter.) This is what delegation — I don't mean to be dodging the question, although it's kind of convenient in this case, but never — (laughter.) I really will — I'm going to call the Secretary and say you brought up a very valid question, and what are we doing about it? That's how I work. I'm — thanks. (Laughter.)" Less..
Added: Aug 24 2007 In: news_politics
By: lasrever Premium 
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