U.S. Congressman John Boozman 3rd District of Arkansas

House Seal Outline

Share This Page Slashdot Del.icio.us Google Digg Reddit Newsvine Furl Yahoo Facebook

Washington, Apr 1, 2008 -

U.S. Representative John Boozman (R-AR) yesterday returned from Iraq where he met with Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, Commander of Multi-National Corps - Iraq to be briefed on the current state of the War in Iraq, as well as Maj. Gen. Douglas Stone, Deputy Commander for Detainee Operations, to learn of improvements to the detainee system in Iraq.

Boozman toured detention facilities at Camp Cropper in Baghdad and Camp Bucca in the al-Basrah Governorate.

“This gave me the opportunity to see first hand how prisoners are being treated,” Boozman said. “There have been dramatic changes to the system in the last several months and it’s made conditions much better for prisoners and the guards.”

Among the improvements Boozman says is the segregation of prisoners who are extremely dangerous.

“The prisoners with ties to Al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations have been separated from the rest of the prison population. The remaining prisoners are given opportunities to help provide for their families through work and training programs. Education is also a key part of the improvements. There is an emphasis on literacy. These changes have dramatically reduced the number of repeat offenders,” Boozman said.

This was Boozman’s seventh trip to Iraq. U.S. Senators Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), and U.S. Representative Mike McIntyre (D-N.C.) also toured Iraq.
 
The congressional delegation’s (CODEL) weeklong trip through Africa, the Central Command Area of Responsibility (CENTCOM AOR), and Europe included visits in Cape Verde, Cote d'Ivoire, Zambia, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Jordan, Iraq and Germany. In Africa and Germany, the CODEL discussed NATO, missile defense, building global partnerships, Africa Command (AFRICOM), the African Union, African self-defense issues and humanitarian efforts.