Majority of Canadians believe Afghan prisoners were tortured, but who really cares?

A survey conducted by Harris/Decima reveals that a majority of Canadians believe in Richard Colvin's testimony regarding the torture of Afghan detainees.

A whopping 51 per cent believe that torture took place, while 25 per cent believe the government in questioning Colvin's credibility.

It is important to note, however that the survey was conducted before the testimonies of retired General Rick Hillier, retired Lieutenant General Michel Gauthier, who served as commander of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Command in Afghanistan, and Major General David Fraser, the commander of multi-national force in Afghanistan's southern provinces in 2006. They staunchly defended their practices and maintained they had no reason to believe torture took place.

In fact, Gauthier said that he told the special committee hearing that he has read the secret email trail submitted by Colvin and nothing suggests torture was committed.

They may be good soldiers, but would they go against the government and admit foul play thereby implicating themselves in this mess? Probably not.

Would Colvin come out and risk his professional career for 15 minutes of fame? Probably not.

The saga continues with both sides playing a political game of chicken to a tee.

The real question that should be asked is if the allegations turn out to be true, would it negatively impact the government? Probably not.

If the torture of Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen, has not swayed public opinion away from the Conservatives, then why should the torture of a bunch of Afghan prisoners carried out by Afghans be any source of public outrage?

When it comes down to it, the connection to the Canadian military is indirect, and the ones being tortured are likely the "bad" guys anyway.

The Liberals are desperately trying to find a scandal that does not involve them, but it is awkward when their own leader has previously justified the use of torture.

Where Harper and his Conservatives can go wrong is if the public perceives their actions (or lack thereof) as a cover-up. A government that is not transparent, or at least one that does not provide the illusion of being transparent is a government that has already lost legitimacy in the eyes of the voter.

It would be in the best interest of the Conservative government to release Colvin's secret email stream and even allow a public inquiry into the matter at some point.

David Mulroney, former deputy minister and now ambassador to China, will explain his side of the story later today. Colvin maintains that Mulroney forced him to censor documents.

The drama continues. Stay tuned.