India asks U.S. for info on workers allegedly forced to work in Iraq

[Robbien]

NEW DELHI (May 4, 12:45 pm ADT) - India asked the United States for information Tuesday on reports that Indian nationals were being forced to work for contractors in Iraq with little rest and low pay and held "against their will."

. . .

The ministry "expressed its concern regarding the disturbing reports about the conditions in which some Indian nationals are being forced to work for contractors active in Iraq," a statement said.The embassy was asked about news reports "that Indians who wished to leave were unable to do so, and were being compelled to continue to remain in Iraq against their will," the statement said.

In Washington, a State Department official confirmed that Indian officials had been in contact with the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. The official said the embassy was seeking additional information about the allegations by the Indian workers.

. . .

Four workers who said they had escaped from a camp in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul alleged they were made to labor for long hours with little rest and low pay, and were refused permission to leave, Press Trust of India news agency said.

http://www.adn.com/24hour/iraq/story/1342891p-8529950c.html

[htuttle]

1. Isn't there anything in the UCMJ about not keeping slaves?

From another link about these workers:

...“We were slaves in American kitchens. We barely got two hours of sleep. Any slip-ups and we were tortured for days," says Hameed.

“Once I told the kitchen in-charge that as I was a devout Muslim I could not cook pork. I was beaten up with rifle butts,” says Hameed’s brother Shahjahan.

“Iraqi militia attacked our camps several times. At times, officers used us as shields,” adds Hameed.

The Americans in the camp told the Indians that they had purchased them for a hefty amount, and that they were to work in the kitchen and do other odd jobs....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=528084

Okay, I guess we're going to have to add a few basic lessons to the military's training:

1) Do not fuck prisoners up the ass.
2) Do not keep slaves.

Given this apparent lack of basic training on proper human conduct, perhaps we should go over the list again to make sure we haven't missed anything obvious like this. Here's a couple more, just in case they don't already know these things too:

3) Do not eat human flesh. People are not food.
4) Do not tear the heads off infants, for any reason.
5) Strings of human ears should not be worn in public.

[smiley_glad_hands]

2. We Need the Indians as an Ally against China.

Even though we are "economic partners" with China we still need other allies in the region. This guy doesn't know what he is doing.