January 22, 2009
On January 22, President Barack Obama signed an executive order that closes the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay within one year. The order also ends the Central Intelligence Agency’s secret overseas prison program and bans torture.
Joining Obama at the Oval Office signing ceremony were Brig. General John Johns, board member of Council for a Livable World, and Lt. General Robert Gard, chairman of its sister organization, the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. Both have been highly involved in efforts to stop torture and shut down Guantanamo. Below is a picture, with Johns at far left and Gard at far right, and video clip from the January 22 signing ceremony.
Brigadier General John Johns, board member of the Council for a Livable World, stands behind President Obama as he signs the executive order closing Guantanamo Bay. Johns is the first man on the far left.
See also this photo, with Gard at far right.
President Obama signs an executive order closing Guantanamo Bay. Center chairman Lt. Gen. Robert Gard is at far right with red and blue striped tie (Getty image).
For more details about how torture undermines America’s moral credibility, read "Torture and National Security," by Brigadier General John Johns.
See also General Gard’s June 2008 Orlando Sentinel op-ed, “Torture Erodes America’s High Ground in World.�
