UN HR Commission - 61st Session - Item 11 : Civil and Political Rights - Oral Statement by the OMCT

United Nations Commission on Human Rights 61st Session, 14 March – 22 April Agenda Item 11: Civil and Political Rights, including the question of: a.) Torture and detention; b.) Disappearances and summary executions; c.) Freedom of expression; d.) Independence of the judiciary, administration of justice, impunity; e.) Religious intolerance; f.) States of emergency; g.) Conscientious objection to military service; Thank you Mr. Chairman, In our statement under Item 11 last year, the World Organization Against Torture voiced concerns over what we saw then as a trend towards the weakening of certain fundamental human rights principles, in particular, by States who claimed that measures compromising human rights were necessary in the name of fighting terrorism. Since then, we have unfortunately witnessed a further rights erosion including in some cases, the deliberate abandonment of one of the most fundamental principles upon which democratic societies are based, namely, the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment. The prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, or punishment is absolute under international law. Judicial decisions in many national as well as international jurisdictions have recognized that freedom from torture constitutes a peremptory norm of international law (jus cogens) and a non-derogable right which cannot be suspended under any circumstance, including armed conflict – whether international or internal – or in situations of public emergency, or for other reasons relating to national security. When States begin to undermine principles of international law of such universally recognized character, they have ceded ground to those they claim to be fighting. In the words of the UN Secretary-General – and I quote from his speech in Madrid earlier this month – “Compromising human rights cannot serve the struggle against terrorism. On the contrary, it facilitates achievement of the terrorist’s objective — by ceding to him the moral high ground, and provoking tension, hatred and mistrust of government among precisely those parts of the population where he is most likely to find recruits. Upholding human rights is not merely compatible with a successful counter-terrorism strategy. It is an essential element in it.” (Kofi Annan, Madrid, 8 – 11 March 2005.) Mr. Chairman, In the year that has passed since the Commissions 60th session, the world has been shocked by one of the worst human rights scandals in recent memory, namely, the revelations that the United States has systematically tortured and ill-treated detainees Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guantánamo, pursuant to policies and directives set at the highest levels of the U.S. government in a misguided and illegal attempt to enhance intelligence gathering. After the Abu Ghraib photos were released in late April last year, what many of us had been saying since early 2002 was transformed from allegation, into fact. Indeed, we know now vastly more than what we knew a year ago thanks to the efforts of NGOs and others who have compelled the release of official U.S. government documents showing inter alia, how the current administration gave a new definition of torture that was so narrow that, according to an eminent American legal expert who testified at the Senate Confirmation Hearings of Alberto Gonzalez, “it would have exculpated Saddam Hussein”. These “torture memos” as they have come to be known, reveal a direct link between the new legal interpretations undermining the prohibition of torture and the subsequent authorization by the Pentagon of coercive interrogation techniques, which in turn are directly linked to the systematic torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantánamo. OMCT is gravely concerned that in the year since the abuses of Abu Ghraib first came to light, little has been done to hold accountable those persons in the U.S. government who were responsible for setting the policies and giving the orders which put the United States in serious breach of international law. Despite statements of top government officials that the U.S. “will leave no stone unturned to make sure that justice is done” not a single high level official has been charged with wrongdoing or is even under investigation. This lack of accountability contributes to the perception that respect for human rights is neither a domestic nor international policy priority for the current U.S. administration. Indeed, several countries widely known to be human rights abusers have reportedly already pointed to the United States to deflect criticism of their own conduct, including Sudan and Zimbabwe. In this connection, OMCT is particularly concerned by the fact that the U.S. government continues to refuse to apply international human rights law and the Geneva Conventions in the conduct of the “global war on terror” particularly in relation to detainees it is holding in many different countries including at secret locations. The practice of detaining persons indefinitely, without charge or trial, or access to counsel has placed hundreds, or more likely thousands of detainees in a “legal black hole” in violation of their fundamental procedural due process rights. OMCT has consistently maintained that incommunicado detention exposes detainees to a particularly heightened risk of torture and ill-treatment. Sadly enough, the systematic brutalisation of Arab and Muslim detainees at the hands of their U.S. captors bears out this proposition. Mr. Chairman, The pursuit of the so called “war on terror” has had deep and far-reaching consequences in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Specifically, it has resulted in systematic human rights violations, which include torture, arbitrary arrest, incommunicado detention, and indefinite detention without charge or trial. OMCT is very concerned that the Government is using the “war on terror” as a pretext to restrict freedom of expression, generating fear among journalists and others who may have critical views of the Government. The climate of intimidation makes the monitoring of human rights inside the country a difficult task, all-the-more so as people fear providing information to the outside world. Journalists in Saudi Arabia report increased harassment and fear that they will be detained on the pretext that they “support terrorism” if they report anything which the Government might perceive as critical of its policies. Similarly, OMCT remains deeply concerned over practices of arbitrary detention, torture and ill-treatment in the People’s Republic of China, and in Egypt where these types of human rights violations remain systematic, wide-spread and where officials enjoy impunity for such acts. Mr. Chairman, Finally, OMCT would like to urge the Commission on Human Rights, to strengthen the language of this year’s Resolution on torture so that it reflects the importance of this fundamental right at a moment in time when it is under assault. We believe that a robust resolution should, inter alia, 1) reaffirm that the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment under international law is absolute and allows for no exceptions under any circumstances; 2) strongly condemn any attempt by States to justify or condone the use of torture and ill-treatment; 3) recall that allegations of torture and ill-treatment must be promptly and impartially investigated by competent authorities; 4) emphasise that those responsible for torturing and ill-treating detainees must be held accountable under law, and that victims of torture have a right to a remedy, including reparation and rehabilitation; 5) emphasise that States may not in any way transfer a person to another State where there are substantial grounds for believing s/he will be tortured; and lastly, 6) emphasise that evidence obtained through torture cannot be used in any judicial or other proceedings except against the person accused of torture as evidence that the statement was made. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Geneva, 30 March 2005