Joint Personal Recovery Agency Memo

The Joint Personal Recovery Agency told the Pentagon's Office of the General Counsel torture was unlikely to produce useful intelligence. The JPRA memo interrogations that involved gaining the detainees trust will be more effective.

(U) As noted previously, upwards of 90 percent of interrogations have been successful through the exclusive use of a direct approach, where a degree of rapport is established with the prisoner. Once any means of duress has been purposefully applied to the prisoner, the formerly cooperative relationship can not be reestablished. In addition, the prisoner's level of resolve to resist cooperating with the interrogator will likely be increased as a result of harsh or brutal treatment.

(U) For skilled interrogators, the observation ofsubtle nonverbal behaviors provides an invaluable assessment of the prisoner's psychological and emotional state. This offers important insights into how the prisoner can be most effectively leveraged into compliance. Further, it often enables the interrogator to form a reasonably accurate assessment ofthe prisoner's veracity in answering pertinent questions. The prisoner's physical response to the pain inflicted by an interrogator would obliterate such nuance and deprive the interrogator of these key tools.

The JPRA compared the interrogation methods the Bush administration would later adopt to the techniques used by oppressive regimes. The memo stresses detainees will lie, in order to stop being tortured. The false information defeats the whole point of the interrogation.

(U) In numerous cases, interrogation has been used as a tool of mass intimidation by oppressive regimes. Often, the interrogators operate from the assumption (often incorrect) that a prisoner possesses information of interest. When the prisoner is not forthcoming, physical and psychological pressures are increased. Eventually, the
prisoner will provide answers that they feel the interrogator is seeking. In this instance, the information is neither reliable nor accurate (note: A critical element of the interrogation process is to assess the prisoner's knowledgeability. A reasoned assessment of what the prisoner should know, based on experience, training, position, and access should drive the questioning process.)

The question is if Donald Rumsfeld saw this memo. All indications are Rumsfeld was firmly committed to the torture policy. It is known that Rumsfeld approved of stress positions.