The long-established superpower of the United States has seen much criticism over the last few years that, in a way, is challenging their supremacy over the international community. Ever since Donald Trump’s election, US politics went from assertive to chaotic, where their internal struggles undoubtedly translated into the international landscape, allowing other countries to change priorities in their diplomatic games and look for partnerships in other nations that could best fit their interests.
However, as much as for the rest of the community, the US’s assertive and strong facade collapsed much like a fragile wall. For themselves, their supremacy is still unmatched, and the impunity they are used to is still high, allowing them to commit atrocious delinquencies that bring the entire international community together to watch as such absurdities occur.
Among all the examples we can give, we will focus on the most recent event that happened on US soil: the use of nitrogen gas as an execution method against an inmate on the death row. Leaving the questionable choice of US lawmakers to have the death penalty in place aside—and the institutionalized bureaucratic system that seems to target a specific demographic of their population to put them on death row—the newly introduced method is bringing light to a new level of human rights violations by the US’s penitentiary agents.
The execution plan did not go as intended, which is not surprising since their meeting on what’s the best way to kill someone seemed as laughable as the conclusion itself, and the individual ended up being part of a 22-minute murder where he was tortured by the gas and left shaking in pain while trying to grasp for air.
This method has been highly criticized, with some saying that the state of Alabama has caused humanity to take a step backwards; however, the execution was still celebrated by those responsible for the killing, who claim justice was made against the man responsible for the killing of a 45-year-old woman in the 1980s.
The international response to this killing was to call for the US state of Alabama to halt the execution, as the asphyxiation could end in torture and violate many commitments made by the US under international law. Ravina Shamdasani, a spokesperson for the U.N. Human Rights Office, says: “We have serious concerns that Smith’s execution in these circumstances could breach the prohibition on torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, as well as his right to effective remedies.”
And it is not the first time the international community has been shocked by how the US handles its inmate population, which in 2022 will boast over a million individuals. For over 20 years, there have been immense allegations against the US regarding their Guantanamo Bay facility, which goes on to be a place of inhumane actions against the US’s prisoners.
For years, this facility has been seen as a symbol of torture and indefinite detention without the possibility of charge or trial. Known to be built as a way for the US to evade the rule of law, the government still holds 35 men inside the detention camp. The surprising fact is that some of these men have never even been charged with a crime, and not one of them has faced a fair trial.
This series of serious allegations about the Guantanamo Bay facility includes the illegal detentions and unfair trials of individuals since 2001 and unthinkable human rights violations against them who were brought there to never see freedom in their lives. In the period where 780 Muslim men were detained, only 7 of them were actually convicted, and one of them has ever been transferred to the US mainland for trial.
And for all this time, knowing what is happening in this detention facility and the future for many, if not all, inmates on the death row, the international community has failed to protect human life and effectively condemn the US for such atrocities. This long-lasting fear of the US is one of the main problems we need to deal with in the community, as this example of impunity is not only claiming lives but also creating a sense of animosity and instability in the international community. Who has been for years now questioning how far the US can push it? When will they ever face the consequences of their actions?
The European Institute of International Law and International Relations
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