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Torture by Police, Forced Disappearance & Other Ill Treatment Resources |
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U.N.
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment For the purposes
of this Convention, the term "torture" means any act by which
severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally
inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third
person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third
person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or
coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of
any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation
of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person
acting in an official capacity.. |
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The Committee Against
Torture (CAT) is the body of 10 independent
experts that monitors implementation of the Convention against Torture and
Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment by its State
parties. All
States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee on how
the rights are being implemented. States must report initially one year after
acceding to the Convention and then every four years. The Committee examines
each report and addresses its concerns and recommendations to the State party
in the form of "concluding observations". |
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The European Committee for the
Prevention of Torture is a branch of Council of Europe
which monitors the situation in prisons regarding the treatment of inmates
and aims to expose cases of torture and degrading treatment by launching
surprise visits. |
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International
Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims IRCT is
a health-based umbrella organisation that supports
the rehabilitation of torture victims and the prevention of torture
worldwide. Its members comprise more than 140 independent organisations
in over 70 countries. Its work is governed by these member organisations. Today, it is the largest membership-based
civil society organisation to work in the field of
torture rehabilitation and prevention. |
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African Centre
for Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture Victims (ACTV) is a
non-governmental organisation dedicated to the
promotion and protection of human rights with emphasis on the treatment and
rehabilitation of survivors of torture by states, security agencies and armed
groups. Freedom House is a leading
advocate of the world's young democracies, which are coping with the
debilitating legacy of statism, dictatorship, and
political repression. It conducts an array of |
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Global
Rights is
a human rights advocacy group that partners with local activists to challenge
injustice and amplify new voices within the global discourse. With offices in countries around the world,
Global Rights helps local activists create just societies through proven
strategies for effecting change. |
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Human Rights Watch is dedicated to
protecting the human rights of people around the world. We stand with victims and activists to
prevent discrimination, to uphold political freedom, to protect people from
inhumane conduct in wartime, and to bring offenders to justice. We investigate and expose human rights
violations and hold abusers accountable.
We challenge governments and those who hold power to end abusive
practices and respect international human rights law. We enlist the public and the international
community to support the cause of human rights for all. |
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World Organisation
Against Torture (OMCT) was created in 1985, and is today the main
coalition of international non-governmental organisations
(NGO) fighting against torture, summary executions, enforced disappearances
and all other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. With 311 affiliated organisations in its SOS-Torture Network and many tens of
thousands correspondents in every country, OMCT is the most important network
of non-governmental organisations working for the
protection and the promotion of human rights in the world. |
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Physicians for Human Rights
(PHR) works at the intersection of medicine,
science, and law to secure justice and universal human rights for all. They
investigate and document human rights violations, give voice to survivors and
witnesses, and plant seeds of reconciliation by ensuring that perpetrators
can be held accountable for their crimes. They believe that
medical ethics are deeply bound to the protection of human rights. PHR uses
their core disciplines – science, medicine, forensics, and public health – to
inform their research and investigations and to strengthen the skills of
frontline human rights defenders. They work closely
with hundreds of partners around the world, using facts to wage effective
advocacy and campaigning and providing critical scientific evidence so that
survivors can seek justice. |