Definitions for "Waterboarding"
Waterboarding is a form of torturehttp://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00002340----000-.html Chapter 18 United States Code, section 2340http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/h_cat39.htm UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1984 Signatories 74, Parties 136, As of 23 April 2004 http://www.un.org/law/icc/statute/99_corr/2.htm Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Article 7, "Crimes against humanity" Definition of torture 7-2:e In April 2006, in a http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/04/06/usdom13130.htm letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez., more than 100 U.S. law professors stated unequivocally that waterboarding is torture, and is a criminal felony punishable under the U.S. federal criminal code which is used to obtain information, coerce confessions, and for punishment and intimidation. Waterboarding consists of immobilizing an individual and pouring water over his face to simulate drowning, which produces a severe gag reflex, making the subject believe his death is imminent while ideally not causing permanent physical damage.