The United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on Torture has criticized U.S. lawmakers for authorizing President Bush’s request to strip detainees of habeas corpus, reinterpret the Geneva Convention and detain individuals without trial. Manfred Nowak said “I’m very disappointed. It doesn’t send the signal that we would have expected after Abu Ghraib.” The legislation has already been widely criticized around the world. One Iraqi lawmaker said the law marked the “abandonment of all calls for human rights and democracy.” A number of human rights groups are planning to challenge the constitutionality of the legislation.