Is The Usage Of Harsh Methods Moral?

Harsh methods, mainly psychological and physical torture, have been used for a long time to force information out of people with many even leading to deaths. For instance, national hero Lim Bo Seng, had been tortured to death by the Japanese soldiers in order to get information about Force 136. In places such as Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib, torture is a tool still used by the military to deal with criminals and get information out of them. However, we must ask ourselves that if this practice is a morally correct or acceptable one In my opinion, it is only justified in certain situations and when dealing with certain criminals.

Torture is morally correct when it is used in situations were there are high stakes. For instance, in the case of a terrorist. In this case, harsh methods such as torture would be considered morally correct. This is so as the world or large numbers of people are at stake here. A terrorist may have information that can be vital in saving these people. For example, if the terrorist knows about plans by his/her organization for a plane hijack. To save these people and getting the information for this through torture is morally alright. Even if not large numbers of people are at stake, torture can be moral if it means saving a life.

However, I feel that the practice of torturing to get information should stick to the criminal himself. It is not right to torture people who are related to the criminals to get truths out of them or to serve as a threat to the criminals. This is not moral as the people have no relation to the crimes committed.

Harsh methods, I feel, are not moral in any other situation. Torture on crime suspects is not moral. If the crimes committed are small scale and stakes are low, torture should not be allowed. Moreover, if these people are suspects and not proven guilty yet, it is not morally right to torture him. Even in Guantanamo Bay, a large portion of the detainees who undergo harsh treatments are just suspects whom are speculated and not proven criminals. This is not right as many of them might actually be innocent and have nothing to reveal and might get tortured to death for no valid reason.