Quaker Conference on Torture

September 24–26, 2010
Quaker Center
Ben Lomond, California

The Third National Quaker Conference on Torture & Accountability will be held September 24–26, 2010, at the Quaker Center in Ben Lomond, California.

Two internationally known anti-torture activists will headline Conference. Human-rights attorney and investigator Scott Horton will be the keynote speaker. Father Roy Bourgeois, founder of SOA Watch, will also bring his unique perspective on the work.

Scott Horton has been one of the most tenacious investigators and reporters on issues of torture and accountability. Earlier this year, he broke the stunning story about three Guantánamo prisoners whose deaths there had previously been reported as suicides. Horton’s investigations showed they more likely died during torture by U.S. secret units.

Roy Bourgeois, a decorated Vietnam veteran and former missionary to Bolivia, founded SOA (School of the Americas) Watch in 1990 and has been active in the effort to abolish the “School of Assassins” ever since. He has also been active in the struggle for women’s ordination in the Catholic Church.

Friend John Calvi, coordinator of QUIT, The Quaker Initiative to End Torture, has been working on the concern for torture and accountability for several years.

Accountability today is the way to prevent torture in the future. The road to accountability will be long and difficult. This 2010 Quaker conference (which is open to other interested persons as well) will be one strong step down that long path. Watch for more details soon about the program. Fees will be kept as modest as possible, and registration will be limited. More information at the QUIT Web site, www.quit-torture-now.org.