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Government Argues Against Compensating POW's

By TChris, Section War on Terror
Posted on Thu Apr 08, 2004 at 09:32:51 AM EST
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by TChris

In time of war, the President should be expected to show support for the men and women serving in the military. Why, then, is the administration trying to block former POW's from using Iraqi assets to collect a judgment that compensates them for the treatment they endured under Saddam Hussein's regime during the 1991 Gulf War?

The seventeen POW's sued Iraq, arguing that they were entitled to compensation for being tortured, starved, and mistreated while being held prisoner. A federal judge agreed, awarding judgment to the POW's of $653 million in compensatory damages and $306 million in punitive damages. But as the POW's tried to collect that judgment from Iraqi assets, the Bush administration stepped in to object.

The Justice Department apparently fears that opening the door to compensation in this case would jeopardize Iraq's ability to rebuild. Stewart Baker, the POW's attorney, disagrees.

"French oil companies are going to walk in and say 'I have a contract signed by Saddam Hussein and I want to be paid,' and they're going to have a claim that is recognized under international law," Baker said outside court. "We think this is a debt incurred by Saddam Hussein that deserves much more priority than some French oil contract."

The United States froze $1.7 billion of Iraqi assets in 1990. Despite a federal law that allows victims to pursue frozen assets if they've won damage awards against foreign governments that sponsor terrorism, the Justice Department argues that the current President Bush seized those assets after invading Iraq and needs the money to rebuild the country. Arguments were heard yesterday in an appeal of a decision that allows Bush to withhold the assets from the POW's.

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