Not war, just standard operating procedure

By LUCY ZELIC
(1) INTRODUCTION

The book, Standard Operating Procedure, A War Story, was published in 2008 by American author and journalist Philip Gourevitch and American film director Errol Morris. After the 2001 September 11 attacks, the George W. Bush administration waged its war on terror announcing it would deploy American troops in Afghanistan and, later, Iraq, in an attempt to capture Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. This led to the re-opening of Hussein’s former death chamber, the infamous Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, which sparked a cataclysmic chain of events involving the United States military and the leaking of thousands of incriminating photographs in 2004. This worldwide news event prompted filmmaker Morris to produce a movie on the atrocities that took place in Abu Ghraib, which attracted five award nominations and received the Silver Berlin Bear award at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2008. Alongside release of the film, Gourevitch worked with Morris and released his own in-depth book, of the same title. Much like Morris’ work, Gourevitch’s book was met with exceptional sales, praise and reviews from critics across the globe and in a stark contrast, also offended angry and hurt Americans.

(2) STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE CONTENTS

The book is appropriately divided into three parts, Before, During and After. The Before component explores in detail the work that went into preparing the United States military for the opening of Abu Ghraib, the documents that were circulated concerning the Geneva Conventions, Military Intelligence policies as well as a brief interlude of what is to be expected with accounts of deaths occurring at the United States prison camps. The reader is introduced to a series of individuals who have either very little or much more to do with the thickening of the plot in later chapters.

The During section of the book proves to be the most detailed and the catalyst for the shocked reactions of readers, including myself. The depiction of the horror that took place and the insider perspectives from the soldiers involved in the Military Intelligence unit of the Abu Ghraib prison portrays a dark and almost surreal reality. Soldiers who had been condemned as perpetrators of evil are given names. The structure and presentation style of Gourevitch’s journalism allows the reader to identify with these faceless entities on a more intimate level. As the chapters progress, the fragments of detail given begin to come together and produce shocking revelations of the United States Army’s negligence and sheer inability to cope with the large number of prisoners that US military forces had rounded up in a desperate bid to quash uprisings in post-war Iraq. The underlying message suggests that the United States military’s presence in Iraq is questionable, perhaps almost unwarranted. The lack of guidelines and warped? ideas of what is the acceptable treatment of prisoners becomes apparent when the prisoners are paraded in humiliating fashion with little being done to correct the wrongs that are being committed. Their admissions to never having received any set rules or standard operating procedures provides further weight to the argument that the planning and operation’s of Abu Ghraib were all wrong. Furthermore, the most shocking element to these tragic occurrences is that soldiers, who claimed that it was to ‘prove’ what was really going on, documented these accounts by taking thousands of photographs. Specialist Sabrina Harman, Corporal Charles Graner and Staff Sergeant Ivan “Chip” Frederick were behind the images and along with the soldiers in them, became victims of their sick objective to illegally document what was going on Tiers 1A and 1B of the prison.

In the After component, Gourevitch likens the story of Shakespeare’s Othello and the use of ‘ocular’ proof to determine everyone’s fate who is involved in the scandal. And in fact, much like in the story of Othello, it is the ocular proof that seals the fate of the implicated soldiers who become the victims of their own demise, their own stupidity. Special Agent Brent Pack, who was the lead forensic examiner of the computer crime unit of the U.S Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the man responsible for judging the context of each photograph said, “In all my years as a cop, I’d say over half of all my cases were solved because the criminal did something stupid. Taking photographs of these things is that one something stupid.” (Gourevitch and Morris, p: 267) As the chapter progresses, the reader learns of the sentences that are given to each of the perpetrators as well as the disturbing cover-up tactics that the United States Army employed to shield themselves from any liability. Despite the army’s efforts, the reader is able decide for themselves who really is responsible, despite it never being spelt out. The crucial elements of war are hidden behind a hideous mask that behind it reveals the many faces of incompetent, mismanaged and ill-advised faces that we know are responsible but will never be brought to justice.

(3) NEWSWORTHY REVELATIONS

Once the photographs from Abu Ghraib were leaked to the public, the world was left to interpret the context of the images and pass judgement on the soldiers that were in them. One of the most famous photographs shows a 20-year old Lynndie England holding a prisoner on a leash who is a lifeless and collapsed figure on the ground. Miss England fast became the poster girl for those opposing the war and along with several other images, the soldiers in them, or responsible for them, were publicly and figuratively crucified without ever knowing what really went on behind the lens or outside the frame of the photograph.

What proved to be the newsworthy elements were that people were unaware of the context of the photographs and that Miss England was asked to pose next to the prisoner and hold the leash by her then boyfriend, Corporal Charles Graner. She was not dragging him as many had suggested and the photograph only lasted for a few seconds. Also among these revelations were the documents that circulated between the chains of command issuing so called “standard operating procedures” and references to the Geneva Convention, which were never clearly defined. Revised and edited documents were released only after the images were leaked and any responsibility the United States Army, President Bush or Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld had assumed had been forfeited because of them.

It was revelations like these that became the newsworthy elements, more so than the photographs, it was the negligence and the so-called policy documents that should have come to the fore more than the acts committed in those photographs.

(4) PART ONE ANALYSIS – INFORMATION GATHERING

In gathering information for this book, Gourevitch credits the anonymous individuals who leaked the shocking information to the world. In his intriguing interview at the Melbourne Writer’s Festival in August of 2008, he goes on to say; “people who leak are the great public servants often.” The complete transcripts of Errol Morris’ interviews run to some two and a half million words. Working with all of the individuals who were interviewed to corroborate their accounts against one another as well as external documents is what Gourevitch describes as “the authors’ determination to represent the story of Abu Ghraib as truthfully as possible.” (Gourevitch & Morris, p. 284)

Errol Morris conducted the initial interviews and he provided Gourevitch with the lengthy material. This meant that he was able to consult Morris on the substance, the meaning as well as the true to form statement without having to deviate from what was intended in the response or having to leave it to interpretation.

Fellow journalists and investigative reporters Seymour Hersh, Jane Mayer and Mark Danner also played a role in contributing to the development of the book. Official documents which were shared with other journalists and investigators provided further help.

Gourevitch read through previously secret policy documents, memoranda, interrogation rules, military correspondence, investigative findings and sworn statements which were made publicly available but as he says a lot of credit should be given to the leakers.

Transcripts of lengthy interviews conducted by agents of the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division with Charles Graner and Ivan “Chip” Frederick were also provided. These were included in the book but not the movie. All direct quotes were taken from those interviews and the sheer dedication and devotion to remaining as objective as possible is clearly evident. Gourevitch’s work is to be admired and revered and the countless hours of research and patience were necessities in order to produce such astounding journalism.

Those who were interviewed for Standard Operating Procedure between October 2005 and November 2007 were, Joe Darby, Javal Davis, Ken Davis, Gary Deland, Tony Diaz, David DiNenna, Tim Dugan, Jeffery Frost, Megan Graner, Sabrina Harman, Vic Harris, Steven Jordan, Hydrue Joyner, Janis Karpinski, Roman Krol, Mary Mapes, Lane McCotter, Brent Pack, Jeremy Sivits and Andrew Stoltzman. Additionally, the partners of the army personnel and other characters pertaining to the story were also interviewed to provide further context but were not included in the narrative.

(5) PART TWO ANALYSIS – THE RAMIFICATIONS OF PUBLICATION

The New York Observer appropriately offered the following chilling review; “Philip Gourevitch’s exemplary book will take its toll for years.” This is an indication of how seriously the contents of this book have been taken and the effect it has had on the reputation of the United States, the George W. Bush administration, particularly Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Despite all of their efforts to shift the blame and refute the onus of responsibility, the ramifications of publishing such a book has damaged their credibility. President Bush apologized to the world about the incident and the meaning behind their management and motive for their ‘war on terrorism’, lost.

(6) PART THREE ANALYSIS – THE ETHICS OF PUBLISHING

In choosing to pursue the story of the atrocities that occurred at Abu Ghraib, Gourevitch told The Age’s (then) media and communications editor, Matthew Ricketson; “I responded like many others at the time, thinking it was a huge story that would shape the political campaign, but after a little while it just disappeared.” His reference to the disappearance of it coincided with the Bush Administration’s and the United States Army’s attempt to cover up the scandal that would have severe implications for the White House and the United States Army and the United States Defense Department. Publishing such a book would seriously harm all three of the aforementioned bodies and if it were not for the constant shift in blame, the “butt covering” and repeated denials, the convicted soldiers would not have borne the world’s wrath. During the publishing process Gourevitch was made to consider the effects his in-depth findings would have on the American public, his colleagues, the United States Government and Army as well as the overall perception of the United States in the world’s eyes. It was also important to represent the facts as they were, to not sensationalize the story and to represent the people being interviewed as objectively as possible. From a reader’s perspective as well as the reviews of readers, there is the uniformed belief that this was achieved.

(7) CONCLUSION

In reading Standard Operating Procedure, one is exposed to the great atrocities that took place in Baghdad’s Abu Ghraib, the mismanagement of the war in Iraq and in the prison by the United States Military as well as the untold truths of what really went on behind the photographs, in the prison walls and in the minds of the convicted soldiers. We are introduced to a life and world so impossibly foreign to us that without documented evidence, would have sounded like an outlandish tale designed only to shock and disgust. The only flaw in this thought is that the things that did go on were actually true. It is a truly outstanding piece of work by Philip Gourevitch, which is a testament to his talented and dedicated journalism that leaves the reader feeling a string of emotions, courtesy of great and objective story telling.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Amazon, 2010, Customer Reviews: Standard Operating Procedure, viewed on http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/B003156B8Q/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books

New York Public Library, 2010, Standard Operating Procedure: Philip Gourevitch & Errol Morris , Moderated by Carne Ross, retrieved from http://www.nypl.org/audiovideo/standard-operating-procedure-philip-gourevitch-errol-morris-moderated-carne-ross

Ricketson, M 2008, The Age, Drawn to trouble, viewed on http://www.theage.com.au/news/books/drawn-to-trouble/2008/08/14/1218307120793.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap2

The Monthly, 2010, Standard Operating Procedure with Philip Gourevitch, Julian Burnside and Gerry Simpson, retrieved from http://www.themonthly.com.au/standard-operating-procedure-philip-gourevitch-julian-burnside-and-gerry-simpson-1255

The Internet Movie Database, 2010, Standard Operating Procedure, viewed on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0896866/awards

The Internet Movie Database, 2010, Standard Operating Procedure Award Titles, viewed on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0896866/