Oh, the Colors You'll See!

Fresh paint and flowers for Abu Ghraib prison

The prison's outer walls were painted in a bright cream color, and Iraqi flags fluttered at the entrance. The driveway to the main gate was spruced up and lined with colorful lampposts, flowers and plants.

Large billboards identified the prison compound by its new name, Baghdad Central Jailers were dressed in their finest navy uniforms and hats and made to stand frozen in formation along a red carpet laid down for the occasion.

Inside, the hallways reeked of fresh paint: lavender, cream and light blue. Glittering party decorations hung on the walls, and pots of plastic flowers lined the corridors. Slogans in ornate Arabic calligraphy filled the walls.

There were no prisoners to be seen. All 400 of them...were moved to a section beyond the sight of reporters behind a heavily guarded gate covered with blue sheets.

The cellblocks that had once been the scene of prisoner torture, abuse and humiliation by U.S. soldiers and contractors in 2003 and 2004 were newly painted in glossy cream. Freshly painted Arabic numbers identified the individual cells, which were empty except for neatly made bunk beds. Large TV screens were placed in the corridors outside the cells; one was showing a popular cooking program on a government channel. Posters with the words "No to Torture" above close-up photos of bodies battered with bruises and cuts hung on the wall.