Bush’s Czech ally accuses him of torture

This video from the USA is called Bush Torture Crimes.

From Reuters news agency:

PRAGUE – Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, a big U.S. ally in central Europe, accused Washington of torturing prisoners after a U.S. report criticized the Czech Republic’s human rights record, a newspaper said on Thursday.

Topolanek, who has supported U.S. plans to site part of a missile shield in the Czech Republic, sharply reacted to a U.S. State Department report that criticized his country over law enforcement, judicial corruption and policy towards minorities.

“To the report from the U.S. State Department I can only say that a country that allows torturing of prisoners can hardly teach me about how human rights have been violated here,” the daily Mlada Fronta Dnes quoted Topolanek a[s] saying.

The comments appeared to refer to the treatment of prisoners at the U.S. Guantanamo Bay facility in Cuba. Human rights groups have criticized Washington for mistreating prisoners, some of whom have been held there since 2001.

In a report issued this week, the State Department said that while the Czech government generally respected the rights of its citizens, there were some problems with law enforcement and judicial corruption.

Touching a sore point, it also said there was some discrimination against minorities, especially Roma, who lacked equitable education, housing, and employment opportunities.

It is a pity that Topolánek waited with his, in itself correct, criticism of torture, until the United States government made (in themselves correct; like a broken clock indicates the right time twice every 24 hours) criticisms about human rights violations in the Czech republic.

The Rightist Topolánek did not go as far yet as ex Bush supporter Andrew Sullivan, who now compares Bush to Hitler because of torture.

Czech missile controversy: here.