The Fate of Qaeda Prisoners
…One of the most dangerous problems in the world today is that those who commit human rights violations so frequently get away with them. It is therefore critical that everyone responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks and for human rights crimes in Afghanistan be brought to justice.

How that happens, however, will ultimately help determine the success of the war on terrorism. President Bush has made it clear that this is a war not just to protect national security but also to defend principles of freedom and the rule of law. It is those very principles, as embodied, for example, in the Geneva Conventions on prisoners of war and civilian protection and in the United Nations Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons Under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment, that require prisoners to be treated humanely.

To the extent that the United States has decided to accord Taliban and Qaeda detainees at least some of the rights of prisoners of war, it should be commended. But the International Red Cross has declared that they should be treated as prisoners of war until proven otherwise, and to the extent that the United States ignores that ruling and disregards international standards, we compromise the very integrity of the struggle we are waging. The danger is that we hand the enemies of the rule of law — those who are looking for any opportunity to convince the world of our hypocrisy — a perfect excuse and an easy victory.

And we do two things more. We provide cover to other governments to ignore human rights standards and in the process make their regions of the world less stable. If the United States does not abide by human rights rules, why should others? And, perhaps most compelling, we may subject our own troops to greater peril.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/19/opinion/19SCHU.html