Declaration of Intent

To be effective, a North Carolina Commission of Inquiry on Torture must be as diverse in its representation of our state as possible. Support must come from faith-based organizations, youth groups, elected officials, civic groups, labor, various political parties, and representatives of different racial and ethnic groups.

We propose the following process:

1. After this Declaration of Intent has been endorsed by a list of organizations and opinion leaders of appreciable diversity and demonstrated commitment, a Steering Committee will be created to develop a formal Mandate for the North Carolina Commission of Inquiry to guide and direct the Commissioners as they discuss and agree upon their goals, scope, and process.
2. The Steering Committee will also be responsible for recruiting a wide array of North Carolinians to serve on a broadly inclusive Selection Panel.
3. The job of the Selection Panel will be to solicit and receive nominations and then to interview and select Commissioners. The political and geographic breadth of the Selection Panel will be essential to its credibility. The Selection Panel will winnow the list, interview the finalists, and choose the Commissioners.
4. The Commission of Inquiry will consist of an odd number of Commissioners, between 7 and 11. Commissioners will be served by a small professional staff responsible for acquiring, collating and explaining existing public records and new information as evidence of North Carolina's involvement with extraordinary rendition and torture.
5. The professional staff must also provide logistical and operational support to the Commission's efforts to raise funds, and may need to enlist and coordinate the support of an established community foundation either to seed or wholly underwrite the effort.
6. The Commission will receive testimony at several well-publicized public hearings, held in different parts of the state and will compile findings from the testimony and evidence into a report that formulates legal and policy recommendations for county, state, and federal governments regarding the use of state and county facilities in extraordinary rendition and torture.
7. The Report will be formally announced and distributed publicly, including to co-sponsors and endorsers whose organizations have earlier committed to receive, read and analyze, discuss, and react to the report.

The Organizing Committee
for the
North Carolina Commission of Inquiry on Torture
P.O. Box 12584
Raleigh, NC 27605
(919) 834-4478 oc.nccit@gmail.com