“Newly
released emails show a close relationship between the American
Psychological Association and the psychologists who helped create the
architecture of the CIA’s torture program.”
“The
APA has denied allegations that it cooperated with the Bush
administration to modify its professional guidelines for
psychologists so that they would be allowed to participate in CIA
interrogations. Those charges resurfaced last fall, in a book by New
York Times reporter James Risen, Pay Any Price. In November 2014, the
organization appointed an outside counsel to investigate the claims
in Risen’s book.”
“A copy
of the emails was also provided to The Intercept, along with a report
authored by a group of psychologists and human rights researchers.
The report alleges that the APA 'secretly coordinated' with Bush
officials to give the administration the legal cover they believed
they needed for the CIA’s interrogation program to continue.”
“The
emails and conference report came from the files of of Scott Gerwehr,
a behavioral researcher with ties to the CIA who specialized in
'deception detection.' Gerwehr died in a motorcycle crash in 2008,
and his exact relationship with the CIA is not clear. But he was
copied on many emails that provide a window into a controversial
period in the APA’s recent history.”
“The
organization in 2002 amended its ethics code to permit psychologists
to follow 'governing legal authority' even if it went against other
aspects of the code. Then, in 2005, following the first major
revelations of detainee abuse in Abu Ghraib and CIA interrogations,
the APA convened a special task force, that, while condemning
torture, affirmed that psychologists could supervise and conduct
research as part of national security interrogations.”
Full
report and details:
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