CALL-IN FOR HUMAN RIGHTS DAY, Monday, Dec. 10, 2018: No More North Carolina Torture Taxis!
Please call or send a message to AG Josh Stein and Gov. Roy Cooper — Sample Message:
Today, Dec. 10, is International Human Rights Day. Please take action in response to the report from the North Carolina Commission of Inquiry on Torture (NCCIT), which your staff have had for weeks. At least 49 human beings were flown to torture by aircraft based in Smithfield and Kinston. Supporting torture has left a stain on our reputation, and hurt our national security.
Make a public statement. Work with other law enforcement officials in our state to start an investigation of Aero Contractors. Acknowledge North Carolina’s role and take steps for transparency and accountability. Otherwise, our state may continue to play a role in torture.
Enforce state, federal, and international law. Stop hosting Aero at our public airports. Torture is always wrong. Don’t let North Carolina be home to “torture taxis.”
ATTORNEY GENERAL JOSH STEIN
North Carolina Department of Justice
Phone: (919) 716-6400 (NCDOJ general line; leave a “Bill of Rights” comment)
Email: ncago@ncdoj.gov
GOVERNOR ROY COOPER
Phone: (919) 814-2000
Email: contactgov@nc.gov
Twitter: @NC_Governor
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NCgovernor/
Background
North Carolina still hosts the CIA-affiliated Aero Contractors at the Johnston County Airport. The 2018 report from the NC Commission of Inquiry on Torture lists 48 men and one woman who were rendered to torture aboard Aero jets. See “Torture Flights: North Carolina’s Role in the CIA Rendition and Torture Program” (www.nctorturereport.org).
Governor Cooper and Attorney General Stein have had the report for weeks. It outlines how they can and should investigate Aero and end the era of “torture taxis” in North Carolina.
Does Aero continue to help the CIA violate human rights? We don’t know. And top U.S. government officials have defended or even helped lead the torture program. Over 40 prisoners still languish without rights at Guantanamo.