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August 15, 2007

NEW YORK STATE BAR ASSOCIATION CALLS ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO ADHERE TO INTERNATIONAL LAW

American Bar Association Approves Recommendation Demanding Detainees are Treated in Accordance with Geneva Conventions

San Francisco, Ca (August 14, 2007) – The American Bar Association’s (ABA) House of Delegates has endorsed a recommendation, co-sponsored by the New York State Bar Association, that calls for the United States government to meet its legal and moral obligations by treating detainees humanely and in accordance with international law.  The recommendation, sponsored by the New York City Bar Association, was approved yesterday at the ABA’s annual meeting in San Francisco.

New York State Bar Association President Kathryn Grant Madigan of Binghamton (Levene Gouldin & Thompson LLP) worked closely with ABA members and City Bar Leaders to craft the final version of the proposal and spoke on behalf of the recommendation on the floor of the house.

Ms. Madigan said, “This proposal was needed to make it explicitly clear that the rule of law applies to all branches and all actions of our government, even when government agencies are operating on foreign soil. Unfortunately, our executive branch decided to embark upon a program designed to operate in secret and beyond the reach of international law, and the recommendation approved by the ABA makes it clear we cannot support such a policy. The ABA position expressly and emphatically states that we as a nation should not and cannot countenance the continued violation of international law, which has done incalculable damage to our nation, at home and abroad.”

The resolution specifically calls on Congress to enact legislation which would supersede President Bush's July 20 Executive Order that purported to define the Central Intelligence Agency’s obligations to provide humane treatment to detainees, but, in fact does the opposite by failing to prohibit the use of cruel and abusive practices at “black sites” being maintained abroad.  The resolution states that this Executive Order is inconsistent with U.S. obligations under Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions because it does not ensure foreign persons captured, detained or interned are afforded the minimum protections set forth in this article.

The resolution, now official policy of the ABA, calls for every individual, acting under the color of US law to adhere to a uniform standard of detainee treatment and interrogation.

In her remarks on the floor of the House, Ms. Madigan closed with a quote from James Madison in Federalist Paper Number 51, which says, "In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this:  You must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place, oblige it to control itself."

The 72,000-member New York State Bar Association is the official statewide organization of lawyers in New York and the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation.  Founded in 1876, NYSBA programs and activities have continuously served the public and improved the justice system for more than 130 years.

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