Luis Pedernera: Ten Portraits against Torture and Impunity

Please, briefly introduce yourself.

I am a member of IELSUR, a human rights organisation based in Montevideo, Uruguay. I deal with issues relating to the rights of the child and coordinate the Uruguayan coalition that follows up on the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Among our various activities, we have been giving special attention since the 1990s to the inspection of detention centres for adolescents.

Today, what is the biggest challenge in the fight against torture in your country? Can you take stock of the situation with regard to torture and ill-treatment in your country (the context, the extent of the problem, the types of victim and perpetrator, etc.)?

In Uruguay we have a sense of self-esteem that makes us see such issues as being very far removed from ourselves. It is as if we believe ourselves to be the best and something like torture will never happen in our country; we are very self-referential. In recent years, however, we have received credible testimony of torture being practised by the police against adolescents in custody and children living on the street. We have also received testimony of ill-treatment taking place in detention centres. It ranges from blows or electric shocks to forms of sexual abuse. The main challenge is to obtain institutional responses, at both the judicial and the administrative levels that confront those situations firmly in order to eliminate impunity for those who carry out such practices.

According to your experience, what are the root causes of torture and impunity?

There is no simple answer; it is extremely complex, but I would highlight the culture of authoritarianism, very present in the penal system, which made torture a ritualized, legalized and accepted part of a function to be carried out. In spite of being prohibited, torture persists for a variety of reasons: the legacy of dictatorial governments, lack of transparency and scant monitoring of police officers and detention centres, and denial of a voice to the victims. The latter point is especially relevant in the case of children because they tend not to be believed, and especially not when they are denouncing torture.

What is your approach and what kind of activities do you carry out to fight torture and ill-treatment in your country? Can you give us examples of achievements linked to these activities?

We visit detention centres, prepare reports with recommendations on conditions of imprisonment and denounce torture to the administrative and/ or judicial authorities. With regard to our activities, we have become a point of reference on the issue by reason of our inspection work and our denunciation of cases of ill-treatment and torture. It is sometimes very difficult for us to recognize our achievements in the face of the overwhelming reality of torture. But bringing to light something that is generally deeply hidden is in itself an achievement and I believe that being the channel through which those who are denied a voice can raise awareness of these situations is extremely important.

What obstacles do you encounter daily when carrying out your activities?

There has been very little institutional development to respond to the challenges presented by torture. For public policy, for the legislation and for the justice system, the issue does not exist. I put forward as an example of this the fact that Uruguay still does not classify torture as a distinct offence and the question of reparation for the victims is missing from any attempt to recognize the impact of torture on the life of a child and its consequences for the remainder of his or her life. The victims of torture must manage on their own; this is unacceptable for anybody, but especially for children.

Do you feel threatened because of your activities? Do you face any interference in your work? If this is the case, kindly provide details.

Not at the moment; the task we are accomplishing is recognized. However, there have been times in the past when we at our organization received threats and notice of penal proceedings for having denounced ill-treatment and torture. The most common problem is that of the issue being ridiculed, minimized or denied.

What needs to be done so that “Nothing justifies torture” becomes a reality in your country?

The possibility of the penal agencies (especially the prison authorities and the police) not enjoying immunity needs to be envisaged seriously.

Torture should be designated a distinct offence. There should be policies that provide for psychological and material reparation for victims. Cultural change should be promoted whereby torture would not be tolerated.

What part does and should public opinion play in the fight against torture and what can the public do to support that fight?

It is really vital to work in the area of public opinion, both to sensitize it to the issue of torture and to achieve recognition that victims of torture are fellow human beings. In our country, as in many others in the region, the image of the other as a fellow human being for whom one should feel concern has been very much degraded and, urged on by the overexcitement and exaggeration of the tabloid press, the population calls for vengeance. This path is very dangerous because it leads, among other things, to the introduction of discourse that legitimizes torture, in that the specific population constituted by the inmates of our prisons comes to be thought of as being beyond the consideration of the ordinary citizen, and anything against them is permitted because they are the enemies of society.