Protesters to Demand Release of Torture Photos & Prosecution of War Crimes of Bush Administration, March to Site of General Petraeus Award

EVENT: Protest demonstration/Photo opportunity

WHEN: Thursday, May 28, 2009 - National Day of Resistance to U.S. Torture

WHERE: Part 1: Grand Central Station, 5:00 pm

Part 2: March to Union League Club, 6:00 pm

Part 3: Union League Club, 38 E. 37th Street, NYC

Portraying detainees at Guantanamo, torture opponents will appear in a dramatic tableau in Grand Central Station on Thursday with photos purported to be among those the Obama administration is refusing to make public. Later, a procession will move several blocks to the Union League Club, where CENT COMM Commander General David Petraeus, architect of the Iraq war “surge” will receive an award presented by John Negroponte, former Director of National Intelligence.

This event is part of May 28 non-violent civil resistance actions in 14 other cities which will demand the release of the photos and prosecution for war crimes of those officials of the Bush administration who directed, wrote the legal justification for and participated in torture. These protests, called by the national World Can’t Wait organization and others, will respond to the growing body of evidence of torture by US military, CIA and contractors.

The protesters will bring the messages: “Release the Torture Photos,” “Torture is a War Crime: Prosecute!” and “NYC: War Criminal Free Zone.” They contend that the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan are international war crimes, that the United States invaded Iraq on the basis of lies, has failed to protect civilians and instituted torture as a means of mass intimidation of the population.

World Can’t Wait’s Debra Sweet explained: “Top officials of the Bush Regime, including Negroponte and Petraeus, operationalized torture. Rather than being the actions of a “small number of individuals” described by President Obama, the torture, abuse and murder of detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo and in the secret prisons set up by the Bush administration was widespread and systematic. With the Obama administration not only refusing to prosecute these crimes, but planning to institute something the US has never before used – preventive detention – this debate must not be left to Congress. People living in the country who care about humanity must take visible action against the US torture apparatus.”

Contact: Samantha Goldman Office 866-973-4463/Cell 347 581 2677

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