Association for the Prevention of Torture - Working Worldwide to Prevent Torture

Important developments in Uganda & South Africa A new law which defines and criminalizes torture in Uganda was passed by Parliament on April 26. A week later, on May 3, in South Africa the Prevention and Combating of Torture bill was approved by the cabinet and submitted to Parliament. These new anti-torture laws are important break-throughs for the prevention of torture on the African continent and come after years of efforts by local and international human rights groups.

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Revised EU Guidelines on torture: weak on prevention

The APT welcomes the recent revision of the EU guidelines to combat torture, which were first adopted in 2001 to provide guidance for EU external action to prohibit and prevent torture. However, the APT regrets that this revised EU foreign policy instrument fails to reflect major developments and opportunities in the prevention of torture.

Over the past decade, the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture (OPCAT) has been adopted and entered into force (63 States parties...
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In the News

Closed torture jail still open

"Closed" Iraq torture jail still open - rights group

Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday Iraqi authorities were still running a jail they said had been shut over a year ago after reports of prisoners being beaten and electrocuted, but the government denied this, saying the site was empty.

The New York-based watchdog and other critics of the administration of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki accuse it of pushing Iraq back towards authoritarianism by cracking down on protests, harassing opponents and torturing detainees.

Report: CIA rendition flights

The European Parliament releases draft report on alleged transportation and illegal detention of prisoners in European countries by the CIA: follow-up of the European Parliament TDIP Committee report.

Link to draft report.

Bahrain - torture continues

Bahrain police 'continue to torture detainees'

Human Rights Watch has accused Bahrain's police of continuing to beat and torture detainees, including minors.

The report comes nearly six months after an independent inquiry prompted the government to pledge reforms.

The country insists it is committed to putting the recommendations of its own report into the handling of protests in 2011 into practice.

More than 40 people died in last year's unrest and 1,600 were arrested.

US secret prisons in Europe

US secret prisons in Europe: a "law of silence" among governments

Further evidence is emerging of the possible complicity of some European governments in the CIA's secret detention programme. At a public hearing of experts on Tuesday, Civil Liberties Committee MEPs deplored the lack of cooperation from EU Member States and are preparing a new report.

Hélène Flautre (Greens/EFA, FR), recalled the "serious breaches of human rights, kidnapping, torture, secret detentions, with the complicity of Member States" on which Parliament had sought to shed light until 2007.

Authorities target children

Syria authorities target children, say UN rights chief

The Syrian authorities are deliberately and systematically targeting children, the United Nations' human rights chief, Navi Pillay, has told the BBC.

She said she was deeply concerned about the fate of hundreds of children being held in detention.

Ms Pillay said President Bashar al-Assad could end the detentions and stop the killing of civilians immediately, simply by issuing an order.

Syria has accepted a peace plan, amid scepticism about its intentions.

UN - Syrian images 'shocking'

Images of alleged torture in Syrian hospitals 'shocking' – UN rights office

6 March 2012 – The United Nations human rights office said today that images shown by a British news programme of the alleged torture of patients in Syrian hospitals were 'shocking' and similar to those received by UN-mandated investigators.

"The pictures shown on Channel 4 last night are truly shocking, and unfortunately very much in accordance with evidence that has been accumulated in the Human Rights Council-mandated fact-finding mission and commission of inquiry reports on Syria," said Rupert Colville...

Video shows Syrian torture

Video from Homs hospital shows Syrian torture

(Reuters) - Secretly shot video footage aired Monday by a British television station shows what it said were Syrian patients being tortured by medical staff at a state-run hospital in Homs.

The Syrian city has been the focus of an intensifying military crackdown on protests against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. The United Nations says more than 7,500 civilians have died in almost a year of political bloodshed in Syria.

Britain's Channel 4 said it had obtained footage of shocking scenes at the military hospital in Homs...

UK detention 'inhumane'

UK detention of torture victims 'inhumane'

The detention of victims of torture and trafficking by the UK Border Agency pending their "fast-track" deportation from Britain has been strongly criticised by the UN.

The United Nations high commissioner for refugees said inadequate screening processes meant that rape victims and torture survivors could find themselves being led off to a detention centre, sometimes in handcuffs, as soon as they arrived in Britain to claim asylum.

Immediate action needed

Immediate action needed to address conditions of detention in Latin America

Violence and tragic loss of life is not uncommon in Latin American detention facilities. In the last week of January alone, seven inmates died in separate incidents, in Argentina (2), in Chile (1), Venezuela (2), and Uruguay (2). In early February, an outbreak of Hanta virus – a form of hemorrhagic fever spread by rodents – killed two inmates and affected several others in a prison in Chile. In the most serious incident in recent years, on 15 February, more than 350 detainees perished in a fire in a prison in Honduras and days later more than 40 were killed... OHCHR

Halt to castration urged

Germany urged to halt castration of sex offenders

Germany should stop the "degrading" practice of surgically castrating sex offenders, the anti-torture panel at Europe's top human rights watchdog said on Wednesday.

Under German law, serious sex offenders can volunteer for the operation as part of their treatment.

The Strasbourg Council of Europe's anti-torture committee said the procedure was rare in Germany, with fewer than five cases a year over the past decade.

Highlights
APT in the Regions
Torture Law Compilation

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'No one knows about us'
Join the campaign for the UN torture prevention treaty (OPCAT)

This film by Lebanese filmmaker Carol Mansour, and produced by the APT, gives a voice to torture survivors and to activists struggling to prevent these horrible violations of human dignity. Available in Arabic and Arabic with English subtitles. Read more...

OPCAT Database

The OPCAT Database on ratification and implementation of the OPCAT, including the functioning of National Preventive Mechanisms. The OPCAT Database is a unique on-line tool which offers information on the ratification and implementation of the OPCAT in all States Parties and Signatories. Information is also available on States which are considering acceding to the OPCAT. The database is available at www.apt.ch/opcat

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Europe & Central Asia

Middle East & North Africa

Compilation of Torture Laws

This tool is a compilation of existing national laws relevant to the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT). It focuses on the criminalisation of torture under national laws of States parties to the UNCAT as well as other relevant provisions.

Accessing the country files:

All files of the States parties to the UNCAT are in pdf format and may be accessed from the drop-down list below. You may easily navigate in the country files by clicking on the bookmark that will direct you to the relevant section of the document.

Content of the country files:

The country files are composed of:

• A fact sheet providing an overview of the laws and
• Relevant provisions of the laws in the original language version as well as an English translation, if available.

The country files are not meant to evaluate the compliance of these laws with the UNCAT, nor their effectiveness in practice.

The APT would like to thank all those who have contributed to the development of this tool, including by providing laws in the original language version and/or translations.

While doing its utmost to update the information contained herein, the APT does not guarantee that this data constitutes the latest applicable laws and/or that it represents the entire national legal framework related to torture. The APT therefore welcomes any contribution or comment to this ongoing public service. Please contact us at

Disclaimer/Non-liability clause:
The material provided herein, including the translations and the laws in the original language version, is designed for information purposes only and may contain errors. The contents and use of this material, including links, do not imply any responsibility from the part of the APT.

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