Abstract
A provision prohibiting torture and other kinds of cruel treatment is a natural part of any comprehensive human rights instrument, and it is no coincidence that this right occupies a very prominent place in most human rights agreements. It generally appears immediately after the most fundamental of all human rights, i.e. the right to life.1 Moreover, in the basic human rights conventions, the prohibition against torture is absolute and unconditional, which means that it allows no exceptions in special cases or in order to satisfy weighty public needs. Indeed, it is one of the few rights from which no derogation may be made in time of war or other emergency.
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References
See Article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Article 5 of the American Convention on Human Rights.
Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights reads as follows: ‘No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.’
Article 7 of the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights reads as follows: ‘No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. In particular, no one shall be subjected without his free consent to medical or scientific experimentation.’
Report on Torture, London 1973.
Torture in the Eighties, London 1984.
Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights reads as follows: ‘No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.’
Article 5 paragraphs 1 and 2 of the American Convention on Human Rights read as fol -lows: ‘1. Every person has the right to have his physical, mental, and moral integrity respected. 2. No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment or treatment. All persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.’
Article 5 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights reads as follows: ‘Every individual shall have the right to the respect of the dignity inherent in a human being and to the recognition of his legal status. All forms of exploitation and degradation of man particularly slavery, slave trade, torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment and treatment shall be prohibited.’
General comment adopted by the Human Rights Committee at its 378th meeting on 27 July 1982.
Communication No. 30/1978 Irene Bleier Lewenhojf et al. v. Uruguay, views adopted on 29 March 1982.
Communication No. 49/1979 Dave Marais Jr v. Madagascar, views adopted on 24 March 1983.
Communications Nos. 241/1987 and 242/1987 Birindwa ci Birhashwirwa et al v. Zaire, views adopted on 2 November 1989.
Communication No. 188/1984 Martinez Portorreal v. Dominican Republic, views adopted on 5 November 1987.
Communications Nos. 210/1986 and 225/1987 Pratt et al v. Jamaica, views adopted on 6 April 1989.
About these cases, see N.S. Rodley, The Treatment of Prisoners under International Law (1987) 102–106.
The case against Greece was also brought by the Netherlands, but as regards the allegations of torture and ill-treatment the three Scandinavian Governments were the only applicants.
Report adopted on 5 November 1969, Chapter IV, Introduction, paragraph 2.
Report, Chapter IV, Introduction, paragraph 30.
Report, Chapter IV, Introduction, paragraph 31.
Report, Chapter IV, Opinion of the Commission, paragraph 11.
ECHR (1978) Series A, No. 25; paragraph 96 of judgment.
Judgment, paragraph 167.
Commission’s Report of 11 December 1990, paragraphs 99–100.
Commission’s decisions regarding applications Nos. 14289/88 and 15776/89.
Application No. 7994/77 Kotälla v. Netherlands.
Applications Nos. 7572/76, 7586/76 and 7587/76, decision of 7 July 1978, The Law, A, paragraph 5.
Application No. 8317/78.
Application No. 8158/78.
Application No. 6870/75.
Commission’s Report of 16 December 1982, paragraphs 75–76.
Application No. 11701/85.
Commission’s Report of 1 March 1991, paragraph 254.
ECHR (1978) Series A, No. 26; paragraph 30 of judgment.
Judgment, paragraph 33.
ECHR (1982) Series A, No. 48; paragraphs 29–30 of judgment.
Commission’s Report of 18 July 1986, paragraphs 86–88.
Commission’s Report of 8 October 1991 in the Costetto-Roberts case, paragraph 42, and its Report of the same date in the Y. v. United Kingdom case, paragraphs 43–45.
ECHR (1989) Series A, No. 161; paragraph 104 of judgment.
Judgment, paragraph 88.
Judgment, paragraphs 90 and 99.
Judgment, paragraph 111.
ECHR (1991) Series A, No. 201; paragraphs 77–82 of judgment.
ECHR (1992) Series A, No. 215; paragraph 111 of judgment.
The Committee’s First General Report, paragraph 97.
During the first fourteen months of its existence (from November 1989 to December 1990), the Committee carried out four periodic visits (to Austria, Denmark, Malta and the United Kingdom) and one ad hoc visit (to Turkey).
According to Article 7 paragraph 2 of the Convention, visits shall be carried out by at least two members of the Committee. However, the Committee has decided that delegations going to large countries should consist of five Committee members, plus one or two experts and two members of the Secretariat, whereas delegations going to small countries should be composed of three to four Committee members, plus one expert and one or two members of the Secretariat. See First General Report, paragraph 55.
First General Report, paragraph 88.
First General Report, paragraph 51.
First General Report, paragraphs 32–33.
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Danelius, H. (1993). The International Protection against Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. In: Emmert, F. (eds) Collected Courses of the Academy of European Law / Recueil des cours de l’Académie de droit européen. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1074-9_4
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