Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment

Latest

• "UN Special Rapporteur disappointed that visit to Cuba will not take place", 9 June 2010 (text in Spanish)
• UN Special Rapporteur on Torture presents preliminary findings on his Mission to Papua New Guinea, 25 May 2010
• UN Special Rapporteur presents preliminary findings on his mission to Jamaica
• Joint study on secret detention of the Special Rapporteur on torture & other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights & fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention & the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances - A/HRC/13/42
• 2010 Human Rights Council main report - A/HRC/13/39
• 2010 - Human Rights Council Study on the phenomena of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in the world, including an assessment of conditions of detention - A/HRC/13/39/Add.5
• 2010 Human Rights Council - Communications - A/HRC/13/39/Add.1
• 2010 Human Rights Council - Follow-up to recommendations - A/HRC/13/39/Add.6
• 2010 Human Rights Council - Mission to Uruguay- A/HRC/13/39/Add.2
• 2010 Human Rights Council - Mission to Kazakhstan - A/HRC/13/39/Add.3
• 2010 Human Rights Council - Mission to Equatorial Guinea - A/HRC/13/39/Add.4
• 2010 Human Rights Council - Statement
• 2009 General Assembly 64th - Statement
• 2009 - General Assembly report - A/64/215
• 2010 Human Rights Council - Statement for the Annual full-day meeting on the rights of the child, "Sexual Violence in Institutions, including in detention facilities"

Introduction

The United Nations Commission on Human Rights, in resolution 1985/33, decided to appoint an expert, a special rapporteur, to examine questions relevant to torture. The mandate was extemded for 3 years by Human Rights Council resolution 8/8 in June 2008. It covers all countries, irrespective of whether a State has ratified the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

The mandate comprises three main activities:

1) transmitting urgent appeals to States with regard to individuals reported to be at risk of torture, as well as communications on past alleged cases of torture;
2) undertaking fact-finding country visits; and
3) submitting annual reports on activities, the mandate and methods of work to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly.

Unlike the complaints mechanisms of the human rights treaty monitoring bodies, the Special Rapporteur does not require the exhaustion of domestic remedies to act. When the facts in question come within the scope of more than one mandate established by the Commission, the Special Rapporteur may decide to approach other thematic mechanisms and country rapporteurs with a view to sending joint communications or seeking joint missions.